Today actually marks my fourth month as a National Health Corps Chicago member. As I approach the halfway mark through my service term, I can’t help but feel anything but grateful. There is something so fulfilling knowing I am doing great things for communities that need it most.
One of my roles is to register patients for the Trinity Hospital Healthy Living Program’s Food Farmacy. In this program, patients come on our distribution days to pick up fresh produce. We have an array of fruits and vegetables for them. From apples to honeydew melons, collard greens to green beans, onions to bell peppers–patients have a colorful take-away bag full of nutritious food.
Throughout my service week, I check our Advocate office’s messages to call patients and get them registered. Last week, I spoke with a woman who had been interested in registering for a while. She doesn’t live in a neighborhood that has grocery stores. I also learned that she didn’t have a car to get herself around town. As someone from the same background, I felt much compassion. Relying on public transportation to go far distances, especially in the cold winter months, is a challenge for many of us. While unfavorable food options such as McDonald’s or Popeyes are on every other block, grocery stores seem to be far and few between. Where can people like her go when they need healthy citrus, vitamin C, or vitamin A-containing food? What do we end up eating when we cannot afford the healthier option? There are so many concerns that Food Farmacy aims to address. For my patient, she expressed how fast food near her home are typical dinners. Although these meals are not the best, they are all she can afford and can get to on a regular day. I assured her that one of the benefits of our program is that you have ingredients to create meals that have greater nutritional value. Food for living. Food for fuel.
After our conversation, I told her about our next distribution day. She was so grateful to me for taking my time in explaining the process to her and helping her with accessing the website. Connecting with her and listening to her tell me about her experiences with food and diet really put things into perspective. Many people want to take the steps to improve their health, but simply do not have the resources to do so. On distribution day, when I saw her coming to pick up her take-away bag, she grabbed my hand in hers and said, “you just blessed me with groceries for the week.” What I led as a simple handshake turned into a moment of community, love, and camaraderie. Connecting with many different patients and ensuring they have access to free fruits and vegetables will improve the overall health of our community. One by one…and one handshake at a time.
