It started with unbearable itching and an angry rash. Uninsured, Beatriz paid out-of-pocket for a visit with her family physician. She’d always been healthy, so she anticipated a quick, simple fix. She didn’t realize she was facing a mountain.
The doctor ordered a mammogram, and when the results came back, had her get a biopsy. Beatriz’s employer stepped up to help them push past the first crest. Her boss paid for the initial diagnostic costs, and she even helped translate during Beatriz and Miguel’s appointment with local breast surgeon, Molly Sebastian, MD.
An excellent, compassionate physician, Dr. Sebastian immediately grasped Beatriz and Miguel’s situation and helped them understand the need to act right away. And she gave them the means to do so with a referral to Arlington Free Clinic, where she’s been providing pro bono surgeries and consultations to uninsured women with breast cancer for nearly 10 years.
Their first appointment was with AFC’s Eligibility Specialist, Marlene. Familiar with their fears, Marlene shared how 12 years ago, when she was a new AFC patient recently diagnosed with breast cancer, AFC helped her family through challenges too overwhelming to face alone.
From that day forward, the same has been true for Beatriz, Miguel, and their two girls—with help coming in the form of volunteer oncologists and counselors, nurses and medical assistants, nutritionists and interpreters. Thanks to our fantastic community, AFC’s patients don’t have to face mountains alone.
“What happened to our family felt like pushing a big, heavy stone up a mountain, but Arlington Free Clinic was shoulder-to-shoulder, helping to push.”
Read our entire 2019 Spring Newsletter.
Collaborating Across the Community for Greater Health Equity
Report from our Medical Director: Happy 75th Anniversary to an Unparalleled Community Partner
Expanding Impact through Dental-Only Pilot
Arlington Free Clinic & Medicaid Expansion
Volunteer Spotlight: Leigh Watlington, MD
Partner Spotlight: Urban Alliance