Red Cross at the corner of the street : a unique system to reach the population

06/06/2023

The health crisis we have gone through has put into perspective many issues of access to basic services.

This is the case in the Hauts-de-Seine department, in France, for more than 4,000 adults and children sheltered in some 80 social hotels as well as for thousands of vulnerable students.

This observation gave birth to the desire to create a program dedicated to access, health and rights. In order to bring these services closer to the inhabitants, the French Red Cross of Hauts-de-Seine has equiped itself with two specific vehicles : one fitted out as a mobile medical office and the other one as a mobile information office.

Red Cross at the corner of the street, a strategy to facilitate access to health and rights

Thanks to their both health and social vehicles, the French Red Cross teams can meet the population and intervene directly near their living place, whether it is social hotels or university residences.

They can thus provide them an appropriate medical and social support.

By placing the beneficiary at the center of the system and by imagining the most efficient solutions, the Red Cross at the corner of the street program aims to ensure the return to autonomy of the people supported.

- Georges Métayer -

The health vehicle allows the reception of patients, the carrying out of nursing chekups and medical consultations on site or by teleconsultation.

It is composed of 2 spaces :

A reception area with the medical office.
A consultation area equipped with an adjustable examination chair, a worktop, a water point, numerous storage spaces including a refrigerated drawer and a 43-inch screen fixed to the wall for teleconsultation.

The access to rights and to digital vehicle allows the inhabitants to be welcomed in a friendly place. It was thought to be conducive to listening and support as well as enable the training and practice of digital tools.

It is composed of 2 spaces :

A reception area with a large corner sofa whose seat is removable and contain a storage compartment, a height-adjustable round table, storage including low and high units, a worktop, a water point and a refrigerator.
A computer area with a tablet covering the entire width of the mobile unit and folding bar chairs.

A single driving-licence is enough to drive these 2 specific vehicles.

They are self-sufficient in energy thanks to solar panels and high-capacity batteries.

Reinforcement of the Red Cross at the corner of the street system

A specific new vehicle reinforces this program.

It is a former ambulance converted into a mobile medical office.

Equipped with a medical office and a comfortable examination chair, it allows the French Red Cross to provide medical and social assistance as close as possible to persons in precarious situations.

The reconfiguration of this former ambulance into a mobile medical office was carried out by our subsidiary St-Aubert Carrosserie, specialised in the fitting out of emergency vehicles.