Reaching the Community through Outreach and Service

While our name Community Clinic, Inc. has been shortened to CCI, it’s by no mistake that the word community comes first.

It is a core principle of our work and an essential part of what makes us a Federally Qualified Health Center. We are not just providing health services for the community. We also host educational events and provide on-site services in the community at public schools, neighborhood parks, recreational centers, and many other public spaces. By being in the community and allowing people to learn more about the work we do outside of a clinical office, we are expanding access to care to achieve greater health equity.

Candid Conversations: Cervical Cancer Prevention

For Cervical Cancer Awareness Month in January, CCI partnered with the Delta Sigma Theta, Inc. Potomac Valley Alumnae Chapter for a candid conversation on cervical cancer at the Casey Community Center in Gaithersburg, MD. CCI’s medical professionals Mia Riley, MD, David Holder, MD, Aastasshia L. Lacy, FNPBC, and Joe McKelvey, PA presented on the importance of cervical cancer screening and the impact this disease has on Black and Brown women. Guests played games such as word scramble and participated in an interactive trivia contest to increase their knowledge about the female reproductive system.

COVID Vaccine Outreach

With the end of the COVID public health emergency, many families are wondering where to get a booster or if they need one. This year, CCI used each outreach event as an opportunity to increase awareness of the COVID booster vaccine by providing them for free. CCI has also been a community resource for other organizations looking to partner with health providers that can offer the COVID booster. In February, CCI partnered with the Clifton Park Baptist Church in Silver Spring to offer COVID and flu vaccines.

St. Patrick’s Day Parade

Many events that CCI participates in are educational, but some are just for visibility. Staff from the marketing, WIC, clinical, and legal departments came to together to walk in the St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Gaithersburg. CCI joined a dozen other organizations including bagpipe bands, school groups, local fire trucks, and more.