Community-Based Clinical Programs
View Community Care Van schedules
Get Mobile Market schedule
Find heart health care at Walgreens
Community health care around Boston and North Suffolk
Not all medical care needs to take place in a hospital or doctor’s office. Just as our exceptional clinicians provide care at Mass General Brigham hospitals and clinics, we partner with organizations to bring high levels of care directly to our neighbors.
We’re focused on providing services that help prevent leading causes of premature death in the communities we serve: cardiometabolic disease, cancer, substance use disorders, and pregnancy complications.
With times and locations that are more convenient than traveling to a hospital or clinic, our community-based clinical programs address many of the critical health issues right where people live, work, and play—improving access and care for all, and focusing on the conditions that help people live longer, healthier lives.
Cardiometabolic conditions
Cardiometabolic conditions, including heart disease, diabetes, and related disorders, are highly prevalent in the communities we serve. And hypertension (also known as high blood pressure) is the biggest risk factor for heart disease and stroke.
We offer local screenings and prevention and care management services for both hypertension and diabetes. This includes early detection and management strategies that can help keep these conditions under control.
Cancer
Cancer screening and early cancer detection save lives. We offer local colorectal cancer screenings and lung cancer screenings. We coordinate follow-up care if needed.
Substance use disorders
Through screening, treatment program referrals, harm reduction services, and recovery coaching, we bring substance use disorder and addiction services directly to those who might not seek treatment otherwise.
Pregnancy health
Postpartum people are generally less likely to attend to their own health needs as they focus on their newborns. As part of our mission to close the gaps in pregnancy healthcare, we’re able to meet postpartum patients where they are.
Your Mass General Brigham community-based clinical programs team
To better connect with our neighbors, our programs are often staffed with multilingual and multicultural clinicians and support staff. And, our team approach, combined with our decades of experience, improves our ability to determine the cause of a condition and develop the right treatment and monitoring plan for a person’s specific needs.
Read below to learn more about the programs and resources you can find in the Boston and North Suffolk communities.
Clinical care in your community
Mass General Brigham community health centers provide a neighborhood approach to patient care, designed to help people stay healthier right where they live and work.
These centers offer personalized primary care for children, teens, adults, and seniors. And with community resources and many medical specialties on site, these centers make it easy for people to receive care without leaving their neighborhood.
Currently we operate five community health centers:
- Massachusetts General at Charlestown Community Health Center
- Massachusetts General at Chelsea Community Health Center
- Massachusetts General at Revere Community Health Center
- Brookside Community Health Center
- Southern Jamaica Plain Community Health Center
We work hard to ensure that the services available at each reflect the needs of the different communities, with many of the same services available in our hospital settings.
Services vary by center and can include on-site labs and bilingual staff who deliver medical care and services that support medical care, including financial assistance, health education, case management, substance abuse programming, screening (blood pressure, diabetes, and mammography, cholesterol, etc.). Some centers also have wellness spaces for exercise, health education, support groups, food distribution, and other programming for patients, families, and the community.
Many of our community health centers are also teaching sites for schools including Harvard Medical School, Mass General Institute of Nursing, Harvard Dental School, Boston University Dental School, and other Boston area health care professional programs.
The Mass General Brigham Community Care Vans expand access to our clinical and preventive care by bringing a range of medical services directly to residents.
This includes screenings and supports for chronic health issues like hypertension, diabetes, cancer, substance use disorders, and pregnancy health, like what’s offered through our Mobile Postpartum Care Unit (MPCU). The MPCU focuses on reducing complications in people who recently gave birth and are at high risk for complications as a result. And our Community Care Vans can also provide screenings and resources related to food insecurity.
Visit the mobile van schedules to see when and where we’ll be each week.
To help improve pregnancy and birth outcomes, our Birth Partners Doula Project connects eligible pregnant patients to a doula.
Birth doulas are trained, non-medical professionals that provide emotional, physical, and informational support to birthing parents. They support parents before, during, and after birth, as well as in the early days following the birth of a child.
Our mobile market collaborations bring free, fresh food to residents in Suffolk County. Through partnerships with La Colaborativa and the YMCA of Greater Boston, we’re able to provide fresh produce as well as shelf-stable items.
The markets operate as mobile grocery stores, and visit multiple sites each week, including Mass General Brigham health centers, senior housing, and community hubs. A nutritionist is also on site to provide nutrition education and resources.
Bridge to Health/Puente a la Salud supports our community members by tackling key health issues, addressing the everyday factors that impact health, and improving access to vital services.
In a partnership between La Colaborativa and Mass General Brigham, we offer services that promote community well-being and address cardiometabolic disease, including hypertension and diabetes. These are major contributors to health care gaps and a leading cause of early death in historically underserved communities like Chelsea neighborhood.
To monitor heart health conditions like high blood pressure for overall health and help prevent more serious conditions or complications, Mass General Brigham and Walgreens have partnered to bring high-quality, convenient heart health care to Walgreens stores near you.
In many neighborhoods, you can visit a Walgreens to easily check your blood pressure, access your medications, and get the support you need to stay healthy.
Mass General Brigham Community Health Programs
We connect thousands of people each year to preventive health education, free health screenings, school partnerships, and community outreach through our community health programs. These programs pay particular attention to health and wellness issues affecting children in local schools, the elderly, women, and other diverse populations—helping prevent diseases and the factors that cause them.
Food as medicine: Treating chronic disease
Description: Having enough to eat doesn’t always mean the same as eating foods that promote well-being and could prevent or treat some diseases.
Our Food Is Medicine strategy encourages people to see the benefits of nutrition from food the same way they view medical care. We provide services in our communities that both screen for food insecurity and help eliminate neighborhood barriers to healthy foods.