Have meds, will travel

Anthony DeCarlo

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The idea of a mobile health clinic that can travel to underserved areas is nothing new. But School of Medicine professor Sandra Springer (left) wanted to improve on that idea: what if the mobile clinic had a pharmacy and pharmacist on board? With the help of a five-year grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse, Springer led the development of the nation’s first retail mobile pharmacy, which launched last December. Besides getting funding, Springer had to persuade the Connecticut legislature to pass a law authorizing mobile pharmacies, the only such law in the country so far.

With a med tech, community health workers, and an advanced practice registered nurse on board, the mobile unit can serve patients who, in Springer’s words, “have difficulty accessing the traditional health care system.” So far, they’ve seen nearly 300 people and filled more than 500 prescriptions.