Winston Salem Times

While the COVID-19 pandemic crimped some aspects of our lifestyles, it also provided a push to move some telecom-based services to the fore. Mobile medical care is one thing that has taken advantage of that push.

Novant Health Forsyth Medical Center has made progress on that front, unveiling this week a new Community Care Cruiser—a bus that carries medical professionals and equipment.

"There (were) some very challenging aspects of the pandemic," Chad Setliff, senior vice president and president of Novant Health Forsyth Medical Center and the greater Winston-Salem market, told WXII 12. "A very rewarding aspect is the adoption of technology and the adoption of remote- and virtual-type services. So I think the willingness of consumers to engage with health care systems and providers and clinics in particular via either mobile- or virtual-type settings has become way more common." 

Novant looks to use the 38-foot-long mobile unit to break down barriers to health care access, the WXII 12 news report said.

The new vehicle will provide several services; including vaccines, screenings and nutrition education. It will be dispatched to serve people in their communities in and around Forsyth County.

Novant Health executives noted that the pandemic gave them a good opportunity to examine the footprint of traditional hospital clinic settings and make changes to expand the group's reach, the report said.

This is just one of several such mobile units that will be brought into service for Novant, the report said. Charlotte and Wilmington are expected to get their own Community Care Cruisers later this year.