Home | Business News | Browse by Publication | T | The Chicago Reporter

Campus of care: one woman realizes dream to provide medical service, regardless of people's ability to pay.

Article Excerpt
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

On a cool afternoon in Pilsen, Carmen Velasquez looks out of her second floor office window in the Alivio Medical Center on 21st Street. Below, in what was a vacant lot, construction workers busily work on a new building. Velasquez smiles as she watches, discussing the completion of Alivio's latest project. What now looks like six stories of gray concrete and steel beams by next summer will be a state-of-the-art senior facility for low-income residents.

"I can't wait for it to be done. It will be beautiful," said Velasquez, 69, the center's executive director and founder. "We are building a whole campus here, and I love looking out and seeing the project progress each day."

The first Alivio clinic opened on Western Avenue Jan. 4, 1089 to serve the residents of Pilsen, regardless of their immigration status, whether they had insurance or the ability to pay. The mission was to improve access to medical care and medication and remove language barriers. The clinic, which provides a bilingual staff to service the needs of the community, in 2007 assisted more than 19,000 patients, Velasquez said.

In the past 20 years, the clinic has expanded to a second location in Pilsen, which includes a pharmacy and pediatric dental clinic, and a clinic in Cicero. Alivio has also established itself in Chicago Public Schools, Velasquez said. Next year, there will be more expansion with the opening of an...

View this article FREE - Now for a Limited Time, try Goliath Business News
Free for 3 Days!