Grossmont Healthcare District continues support of Volunteers in Medicine in El Cajon

The Grossmont Healthcare District (GHD) recently hosted a check presentation ceremony with Maureen Hartin, CEO of Volunteers in Medicine (VIM) San Diego. The ceremony celebrated GHD’s ongoing support of VIM, including a $150,000 grant awarded during GHD’s current fiscal year.

GHD’s grant will assist with paying for diagnostic test lab tests and fees as well as medical supplies for uninsured residents in the East Region, who are treated for free at the VIM El Cajon medical clinic at 1457 East Madison Ave.

The Grossmont Healthcare District (GHD) recently hosted a check presentation ceremony with Maureen Hartin, CEO of Volunteers in Medicine (VIM) San Diego. The ceremony celebrated GHD’s ongoing support of VIM, including a $150,000 grant awarded during GHD’s current fiscal year.

GHD’s grant will assist with paying for diagnostic test lab tests and fees as well as medical supplies for uninsured residents in the East Region, who are treated for free at the VIM El Cajon medical clinic at 1457 East Madison Ave.

Michael Emerson, GHD board president, said, “We are proud to support Volunteers in Medicine and their mission to improve access to health care for America’s underserved, particularly the uninsured, by relying on volunteer medical professionals, including retired doctors and nurses. We applaud Volunteers in Medicine in their effort to bring together medical professionals with patients who don’t have health insurance.”

VIM’s El Cajon clinic is staffed by more than 100 professional volunteers, including retired doctors, nurses and support staff, who donate thousands of hours in providing primary care services to more than 2,000 patients annually. The majority of patients are from employed working families who earn too much to qualify for a government health program, yet too little to afford health insurance, according to Hartin.

Founded in 1994, VIM is a nationwide nonprofit dedicated to developing free community-based health clinics for the uninsured. There are currently 97 VIM clinics operating in 25 states. When the El Cajon clinic opened in the fall of 2006, it was California’s first VIM clinic.

The Grossmont Healthcare District is a public agency that supports various health-related community programs and services in the East Region. Formed in 1952 to build and operate Grossmont Hospital, GHD serves as landlord of Sharp Grossmont Hospital, including ownership of the property and buildings on behalf of local taxpayers. The District is governed by a five-member board of directors, each elected to four-year terms, who represent more than 500,000 people residing within the District's 750 square miles in San Diego's East County. For more information about GHD, visit www.grossmonthealthcare.org.