|
Yvonne Trevino, a staff member of the Ripley House pediatric
clinic, arrives at her job every day feeling blessed. “I’m very
happy here,” said Trevino. “My kids go to school down the hallway,
I’m helping my community and I’m doing what I love.”
Ripley House, located in Houston’s east end, services the heart of
the city’s Hispanic community. It houses a charter school, a
community center for families and a clinic operated by
Texas
Children’s Pediatric Associates. The clinic is part of Project
Medical Home, a program of Texas Children’s Pediatric Associates,
which is a subsidiary of Texas Children’s Hospital. Its mission is
to establish community-based pediatric practices that provide
access to quality care, regardless of the patient’s ability to
pay.
“It’s not enough to know that the clinic exists; we really want to
make sure that the families that come to the Ripley House
understand that we are their medical home,” said Dr. Rani Siddiqi,
Texas Children’s Pediatric Associates pediatrician. “We want them
to feel like this is a place where they can bring their children
when they’re sick and see familiar faces. The families know the
providers here and the providers know the families.”
Trevino appreciates this philosophy. When her children enrolled in
the Ripley House charter school she changed their pediatrician to
Dr. Siddiqi. “After our first appointment with Dr. Siddiqi I felt
a sense of contentment and comfort,” said Trevino. “Dr. Siddiqi
has the ability to make children feel special by knowing their
names and their concerns as she greets them at every visit.”
“The families here over time have really developed a trust with
Ripley House, with me as a provider and with the staff because
they understand that we do understand where they’re coming from,”
said Dr. Siddiqi. “There are no barriers at Ripley House.”
|