Mobile unit seeks to bridge gap in healthcare access

Pennsylvania's Greene County, an area in the state's southwest corner referred to by some as Middle Appalachia, is rural hill country with a distressed economy and medically underserved populace. In this needful area, Penn State's Mona Counts, a certified nurse practitioner, established the Mt. Morris Primary Care Center to serve the medical needs of the county's residents. When Counts found that many in the region couldn't get to the care center because of distance, she started a mobile health unit with the goal of taking healthcare to the people. With two student nurses and one nurse practitioner, the mobile unit criss-crosses the county in an attempt to span the gap between those who need quality healthcare and those who can provide it.