BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO — For the past five years, Clinica Sierra Vista's Street Medicine team has provided consistent care for the unhoused community. For one of the team members, this outreach work is full-circle.
- Video shows a look inside a morning with Clinica Sierra Vista's street medicine team. Weekly, they pack up trucks before sunrise to provide care to the unhoused population in Bakersfield.
- One of the team members says he's able to bring a unique perspective to the team: he spent over three years unhoused.
- For the past five years, the street medicine team has provided care ranging from managing conditions and distributing food and water to harm reduction and connecting with substance abuse counselors.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Once a week, a team from Clinica Sierra Vista packs up their trucks and drives down to the riverbed. In the five years since the street medicine team started, they’ve been able to help save lives and provide care for a vulnerable population.
“Back then, we were walking with a wagon and backpacks," Scott Dopp said. "Now, we’ve upgraded to two trucks. We've come a long way.”
Scott Dopp has been part of the street medicine team since they first started five years ago, first as a volunteer, and now as a full-time employee.
In that time, Dopp says the equipment has upgraded, but the mission has stayed the same: take care of the people who need help.
He tells me, returning to the riverbed is a bittersweet reminder.
“I was homeless for three and a half years," he said. "This area at the river, where we are now, is where I was at.”
Dopp says the team brings medical care and supplies, hygiene kits, food, and harm reduction services to at least 50 people a week, causing people to line up on distribution mornings.
Dopp says they’ve helped with harm reduction, found people housing, others they've connected with addiction specialists, and simply distributed food and water. They're consistent with their care, Dopp says, showing up weekly for the people who depend on them.
“We’ve saved many people out here," Dopp said. "Just like I tell people, you’re not gonna die on my watch.”
During his time with the team, Dopp says he’s helped expand their offerings because he understands what people need.
“I know that I’ve come full circle, and I can use these things I learned while I was out here…it’s beneficial,” he said.
By coming out to the area weekly, Dopp says they’ve been able to build relationships with the people they see and treat.
“I like seeing those people that we’ve got in the housing that have jobs that are improving their life. You know what I mean, that’s what it’s about," Dopp said. "It’s really good to see that…I just—I love this. I love this job.”
The street medicine team is led by Dr. Matthew Beare. The team says they've seen the demand go up in recent years, and they are consistently in need of water, socks, dog food and leashes. To learn more about Clinica Sierra Vista's healthcare options for the unhoused community, click here.
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