This week the mobile unit was planned to launch in the community, but the exhaust burnt a hole in the side of the van. As a result, the timeline of the mobile unit has changed and we will not go out until later in the summer. Thankfully, the hard launch of the mobile unit was planned for the Fall and only the soft launch will be altered. 

As someone new to the Charlottesville community, I will have more time to learn the intricacies of the city and its people. For example, Charlottesville has made a huge effort to help refugees settling in the United States and there is a large refugee population in Charlottesville. Further, with a population of around 45,000, UVA Health serves, conservatively, over 200,000 people per year. With the addition of the mobile care unit expanding care to individuals that cannot reach UVA Health brick and mortar locations, that number will only increase. 

As I have begun meeting with the key players in the mobile unit, I can see how the people UVA serves and its close-knit community impacts the decisions made regarding UVA Health's initiatives.