Broward schools and a human services nonprofit have launched health care centers in medically underserved areas in the county, offering a lifeline to community members with limited access to essential care.
Blanche Ely High School in Pompano Beach and William Dandy Middle School in Fort Lauderdale are the first schools in the district to house "Health and Resource Hubs," offering preventative medical screenings, general check-ups, counseling and more.
Both communities are medically underserved and face a health professional shortage — a label meaning the need for primary, mental and dental care goes largely unmet — according to the federal Health Resources and Services Administration.
As the president and CEO of Community Based Connections, the nonprofit that helped realize the hubs, Mikelange Olbel wanted to give back to his native Broward.
"Everybody talks about generational wealth, but we forget about generational health," Olbel told WLRN, "and this is how generational health starts."
Olbel, who used to live in the Pompano Beach community Blanche Ely High School serves, knows first-hand the toll scarce preventative care and treatment takes on a person and family. His father died of kidney failure just months before his son's wedding.
" This is a personal story for me; I grew up in this area — but what hits me most is that we don't have enough preventable care in our community," Olbel said. "So we are about creating a healthier Broward."
The households in a three-mile radius of the hubs are majority Black and Latino. Collectively, 47%, they fall below the poverty line.
The Health and Resource Hubs offer a way for students to gain experience and begin accumulating clinical hours to reach their medical field ambitions.
"We're creating the next nurse, the next doctor, the next neurologist," Olbel said. "So that's important to the work that we're doing."
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Broward schools superintendent Howard Hepburn applauds the program and collaboration.
“We are excited to see these programs thrive, not only addressing the medical needs and lifestyles of our diverse student population, but by taking a holistic approach that nurtures and strengthens the entire family unit,” Hepburn said in a statement.
Samantha Denis is a senior at Blanche Ely High School and part of the practical nursing program, which prepares students to become licensed practical nurses by providing classroom, laboratory and clinical training. For her, she said, this program is step one to achieving her dream of being a doctor.
On top of being an opportunity to build her résumé, she loves that the hub gives back to her community, especially with the mental health services.
"Mental health is really important," Denis told WLRN. "Being able to have someone to talk to, someone to help guide you, especially me going into my senior year with the stress of the practical nursing program, gaining scholarships and going to college, I feel like it's very vital to have those resources on campus and at hands."
Junior Mike Chevelon dreams of becoming a sports medicine physician. On top of accumulating clinical hours towards that dream, being part of the hub lets him be part of the team helping his community.
" I just feel like overall it's a blessing to have to be put in this position to have this opportunity," Chevelon told WLRN.
The hubs are staffed by a team of board-certified physicians, nurse practitioners, behavioral health specialists, dentists and support staff. Primary care services are operated by Broward Community and Family Health Centers, a safety-net provider of affordable, accessible, comprehensive, primary and preventive care programs, focusing on patient-centered care.
The "Health and Resource Hubs" at William Dandy Middle Blanche Ely High are open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday to Friday. Anyone who walks through the doors of the center is eligible for services — regardless of insurance status or ability to pay.
