Project Access San Diego (PASD), A program of Champions for Health (CFH), provides a referral pathway for uninsured adults ages 26–49, at 250% of federal poverty level, who are not eligible for Medi-Cal, Medicare, and cannot afford insurance. We arrange elective, medically necessary outpatient procedures by leveraging donated care. The Care Managers make the process smooth for the specialist and their office staff accepting PASD patients in the waiting room during normal office hours.
Project Access Program Manager
Project Access Care Manager
Project Access Program Manager
PASD care managers are the linchpin in, and facilitator of, this referral process. Celene Salazar, a registered nurse and the program manager, started with CFH as an immunization volunteer. Evelyn Peñaloza and Desseray Reyes, both care managers, started as college interns, with immunization and PASD respectively. These ladies screen clients for eligibility and match patients with specialists; navigate patients through all appointments and surgeries; coordinate all activities between PCP and specialist offices; provide (free to patient) medical interpreting, transportation, medicines, diagnostic tests, and DMEs. Most importantly, they are the patient’s advocate throughout the entire process.
“CFH opens a door into a community that is very close to me, which I am proud to be a part of: the Hispanic Latino community,” Salazar says. “Being able to serve this community is just like serving my family. It’s close to home, it’s my past and it’s my present.” She continues: “Being able to serve specifically 26to 49-year-olds means we are helping parents of young kids be successful. The medical care they receive ensures that they can get better and can continue to provide for their families. The kids can see their parents as strong. We bridge that gap for them.”
“One of the most rewarding parts of working at CFH is to see the full transformation that a patient goes through, and know that I was a part of it,” Peñaloza says. “Being able to see the patients get better physically, and also be happy and lively — their entire demeanor changes from getting this help. Without CFH, these patients would not have been able to get this kind of medical care.”
Reyes simply enjoys being there for moral support. “I know some patients are scared when going to the doctor’s office, so they reach out and ask if it’s OK to accompany them,” she explains. “When I get to see a patient face-to-face, it makes more of a personal connection. Being that form of support for them makes me feel very fulfilled.”
Peñaloza agrees. “Patients tell me all the time, if it weren’t for you, I don’t know what I would do,” she says.
Ultimately, Project Access is about health equity. “Health equity means having the same opportunities so that we can be the best version of ourselves, healthwise,” says Peñaloza. CFH removes barriers to medical access so that nothing gets in the way of the opportunity for treatment.
Since 2008, Project Access has facilitated $27 million in care for more than 7,500 uninsured patients by providing free consultations and surgeries — all thanks to the dedication, time, and talent of our volunteer specialty physicians.
