New mobile health clinic unveiled in Rio Grande Valley
(Photo by UTHealth Houston)
UTHealth Houston celebrated a major milestone in community healthcare Oct. 22 with the ribbon-cutting ceremony for its new, state-of-the-art mobile clinic in the Lower Rio Grande Valley.
Thanks to the generosity of donors, donor organizations, and matching funds provided by UTHealth Houston, more than $550,000 was raised to replace the aging mobile unit. The newly debuted clinic is more than double the size of its predecessor, increasing capacity to serve approximately 2,500 patients annually, up from 1,400 patients.
“At UTHealth Houston we firmly believe that where someone lives should never determine whether they can access the healthcare they need,” said Melina R. Kibbe, MD, UTHealth Houston president and Alkek Williams Distinguished Chair. “That is why this new mobile health clinic is so important. We’re not simply asking people to come to us. We are bringing healthcare closer to them.”
The unveiling marks a new chapter in nearly 40 years of providing free, high-quality medical care to underserved communities across Cameron and Hidalgo counties. Established in 1986, the program earned a Texas County Award for outstanding healthcare delivery to border residents.
Operated through the Department of Internal Medicine at McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston, the mobile health clinic has provided medical services to residents along the Texas-Mexico border for decades. The program connects the medical school’s clinical expertise with communities where access to routine and specialized healthcare can be limited. It offers free consultations, preventive services, and assistance managing chronic conditions.
Expanding care and impact
The enhanced mobile unit operates in partnership with local labs, X-ray facilities, and pharmacies to provide low-cost services, medications, and diagnostic tests. To ensure seamless operation, the clinic rotates between sites on school and college properties that supply electricity, water, sewage, and internet.
Through the Department of Internal Medicine, the clinic provides primary and preventive care for patients of all ages, including those without health insurance or an established primary care physician.
Services range from routine examinations and treatment of minor illnesses to screenings for diabetes, hypertension, and high cholesterol. When patients require additional expertise, specialists in Houston can provide consultations through telemedicine, while referrals to local healthcare providers help connect patients with additional diagnostic testing and treatment.
“For the families and individuals we serve, access to healthcare can make an enormous difference in their quality of life,” said David D. McPherson, MD, vice president of clinical and translational sciences at UTHealth Houston, as well as the Francine J. and Frederick M. Pevow, MD, Chair of Internal Medicine and the James T. and Nancy B. Willerson Chair at McGovern Medical School. “This mobile clinic allows us to reach patients who might otherwise go without care, identify health concerns earlier, and help people manage chronic conditions before they become more serious.”
The expanded mobile unit’s three primary objectives
Increased access to care: The clinic provides essential screenings and treatments, including lipid and glucose screenings, Pap smears, immunizations, and early cancer detection. Through telemedicine and faculty support from internal medicine, pediatrics, adult cardiology, endocrinology, oncology, obstetrics, and infectious disease, the clinic also helps patients manage conditions such as hypertension, diabetes, heart disease, and eye disease, which limits unnecessary emergency room visits.
Hands-on educational opportunities: The expanded space accommodates more fourth-year medical students and internal medicine residents from McGovern Medical School, providing future healthcare leaders with frontline clinical training, health screenings, and cultural competency education. Working directly with patients in the Rio Grande Valley also allows trainees to apply their clinical knowledge while developing a greater understanding of the social, economic, and geographic barriers that can affect access to care.
Innovative public health research: The mobile clinic supports vital research aimed at improving health outcomes in underserved populations through collaborative initiatives with UTHealth Houston School of Public Health in Brownsville.
A community-wide celebration
The ribbon-cutting ceremony brought together leaders in healthcare, higher education, and government from across the region to mark this crucial expansion of services.
The ceremony featured remarks from regional, academic, and municipal leaders, including Kibbe; McPherson; Nolan Perez, MD, regent of The University of Texas System; Gina Cano-Monreal, PhD, provost of Texas State Technical College; state Rep. Janie Lopez, of San Benito; Norma Sepulveda, mayor of Harlingen; Pedro Galvan, mayor of San Benito; and John Cowen, mayor of Brownsville.
Attendees toured the new mobile health clinic and participated in a special student meeting with UTHealth Houston leaders Kibbe and LaTanya Love, MD, dean of McGovern Medical School, H. Wayne Hightower Distinguished Professor in the Medical Sciences, and executive vice president of university affairs at UTHealth Houston.
The new mobile unit reaffirms UTHealth Houston’s ongoing commitment to expanding access to essential healthcare services, training the next generation of medical professionals, and serving the healthcare needs of South Texas communities.
