Providence St. Mary High Desert Medical Group, Providence 65+ Health Care and Wellness Center, is located in Apple Valley and offers primary care for the senior community of the high desert. They are patient-focused and passionate about their work. Providence 65+ provides free transportation to appointments with their 65+ Transportation Unit and has created the Senior Select center. Recently, they also added a Mobile Clinic to reach patients in more remote areas.
Providence 65+ and their care team strive to ensure you feel taken care of and heard from your very first appointment. New patients are scheduled for a 60-minute appointment and meet with a care coordinator who provides a My Care binder tailored to your needs. This binder helps keep all your medical information up to date and in one place. Follow-up appointments are scheduled for 30 minutes, giving you ample time to discuss questions without feeling rushed. After every appointment, you meet with your care coordinator for an after-visit summary and to set up further appointments and transportation if needed. They also offer four same-day appointment slots, two in the morning and two in the afternoon, for urgent needs.
Your care extends beyond your doctor and care coordinator. If you are prescribed medication, you will meet with a pharmacist to ensure you understand your medication and have any questions answered. The staff includes a dietician available two days a week and a social worker with 50 years of experience who can assist with utility discounts, transportation, food, placement, and more. The facility also offers two rooms for virtual consultation visits for referral appointments at other facilities. The care team sees you as more than a patient; you become part of their family. Reynita Foltz, Medical Office Manager, shared the Providence 65+ motto: “Know me, care for me, ease my way.”
The 65+ Transportation Unit is a passenger bus that is free for patients. They are the only health care center in the high desert to offer this type of transportation assistance. The unit can be used for doctor’s visits, specialist appointments, X-rays, and labs. It operates from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, and can hold up to 12 patients, with two wheelchair-accessible spots. The transportation unit is currently servicing the Hesperia, Victorville, and Apple Valley areas.
In June of this year, Providence 65+ launched their new Mobile Clinic Unit, first stationed in Helendale. The mobile clinic has two exam rooms and currently offers physical exams, with plans to include labs in the future. The unit will move to a new area each month and set up for one day from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. They plan to take the mobile unit to Phelan, Pinon Hills, Adelanto, and Jess Ranch in the near future, notifying each community a month in advance. The care coordinator will also contact patients in those areas to schedule appointments for the day the mobile unit is present.
To use the above-listed services, you must be a member. The process is quick and easy with a phone call or by filling out a form on their website. Providence 65+ accepts most insurance providers, such as Blue Shield of CA HMO & PPO, Anthem Blue Cross HMO & PPO, and Cigna HMO & PPO, as well as most Medicare and Medicare Advantage plans.
The healthcare and wellness center also offers an active and engaging Senior Select program. The Senior Select facility, located next to the Providence 65+ office in Apple Valley, provides a variety of exercise classes, games, crafts, bingo, educational talks, and support groups each week. On the second Monday of every month, they offer an information session about the Providence 65+ clinic. While the program is designed to keep the senior patient community connected, all activities are free or low-cost for all seniors 55 and older in the high desert. For a calendar of events and how to register, visit https://www.psjhmedgroups.org/Locations/Apple-Valley-Senior-Select.aspx#Overview.
Providence 65+ is dedicated to the senior community, and their passion for patient care is evident in all they do. Rached El-Hajjaoui, Senior Director of Clinical Operations, said, “Our whole goal is to keep patients healthy and happy!” For information on becoming a member of Providence 65+ Health Care and Wellness Center and their accepted insurance providers, visit https://www.providence.org/locations/socal/apple-valley-health-center.
