Fort Worth’s 76104 pop-up health clinic shows residents ‘we’re important’
Jessica Jackson was the first person in line at a free pop-up heath clinic in 76104 on Saturday morning. The clinic opened at 10 a.m., but she got there two hours early, excited for what was on the other end of the entrance.
“What brought me out here was the actual opportunity to sign up for the COVID vaccination,” she said. “It has affected my family and I was fortunate to be the one that did not test positive, so I needed to get signed up.”
When she walked through Evans Plaza, she stopped at different booths along her way to the vaccine registration area. Her blood pressure and sugar was tested. She got information about SNAP food benefits and she got information about JPS Connection to give her sister, who doesn’t have health insurance.
The creation of the pop-up clinic started after Fort Worth resident Monti Shabout read the Fort Worth Star-Telegram series “Life & Death in 76104,” which chronicled life in three neighborhoods south of downtown Fort Worth — Historic Southside, Morningside and Hillside. The series was sparked by a 2019 UT Southwestern study that found residents of the 76104 ZIP code have the lowest life expectancy rate in the state.
Shabout contacted councilwoman Kelly Allen Gray and together, the women found Peggy Leitch, the executive director of Mercy Clinic, which provides free medical care to residents living in the 76110 ZIP code. They started planning the clinic in the fall of 2020.
The women hope to open a permanent clinic in 76104 but will start with a series of free pop-up clinics first. The next is planned for early June, Shabout said on Saturday.
For Jackson, the clinic was a way for her to get critical health information about herself and her friends and family.
“I have already talked to one of my other friends and was like, ‘You need to come down here and get in line,’” she said. “So she’s on her way.”
The clinic was also a reminder that Fort Worth’s south and east side communities matter.
“We need more opportunities and things like this for the people to know who’s on the east side and south side, that you’re not forgotten,” she said. “People know we’re here and we’re important.”
This story was originally published March 20, 2021 at 1:50 PM.
