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County details Latino Health Assessment first-quarter actions; McKee clinic to add specialties and neighborhood "satellite" sites
Summary
Santa Clara County staff presented the first quarterly report on the Latino Health Assessment, outlining completed actions, a work plan and plans to expand services at the Valley Health Center McKee (women's health, pediatric urgent care, cardiology) plus smaller community-linked satellite clinics and a promotora workforce plan.
Santa Clara County officials on Nov. 20 reviewed the first quarterly implementation report for the Latino Health Assessment, describing cross-department activity to expand access to culturally responsive services across the county.
"What we bring you today is just the first quarterly report describing, in fact, just a subset of what has already happened," a county health representative said, noting memoranda from the county health care system and coordinated action items spanning public health, behavioral health, probation, family and children—s services and supportive housing. Chair Sylvia Arenas opened the update by thanking staff and emphasizing community-centered delivery.
County health leadership said the outpatient clinic on the Regional Medical Center campus — referred to in discussion as the Valley Health Center McKee — will expand specialty offerings. The list of planned services included obstetrics/gynecology, urgent pediatric care and multiple specialty clinics from cardiology to ophthalmology. The health system has hired specialists whose primary practice sites will be located in South County, and officials said they will promote the McKee site to local residents.
Officials also described a two-tiered access strategy: maintain large health centers while adding smaller, neighborhood "satellite" clinics that would be affiliated with the larger centers and take advantage of federally qualified health center billing rates. The goal is quicker, culturally tailored access in neighborhoods the county identified as clinic deserts.
On labor-and-delivery services, the county said it remains committed to maintaining an L&D unit at St. Louis Regional Hospital despite low volume, citing staffing and 24/7 anesthesia coverage as a core challenge. Officials said current deliveries at St. Louis average roughly 30 per month and could potentially double if patient flow changes; that low volume makes maintaining specialty coverage costly. As an interim response to emergency-room crowding, the county described modular emergency-department expansions placed on the St. Louis campus while capital planning proceeds to add permanent bed capacity.
Committee members pressed county staff on outreach and community awareness; health leadership said they plan community education and an open house in early next year to publicize added services. The county also launched a design process to better integrate promotoras (community health workers) into programs, convening a design team and promising a spring report with recommendations. Staff said sustainability and policy barriers (including reimbursement and certification questions) would be addressed as part of that planning.
The committee voted to receive the report; members said they would follow up on data requests about delivery volumes and public outreach plans.
What—s next: staff will return with outreach plans for the McKee clinic, a promotora program timeline and any capital project proposals for long-term emergency-department expansion at St. Louis Regional Hospital.
