“Tu cita de salud” with Telemundo Reno and Community Health Alliance: Pediatric and WIC Services

Learn about our pediatric and WIC services.

Alejandra Falconi: Welcome to another Tuesday, where we have another Tu Cita de Salud (Your Health Appointment) with Community Health Alliance. Our guests today are Dr. Maria Fernandez, medical director, and Irene Mejia, manager of WIC at Community Health Alliance. Thank you very much for coming today!

Irene Mejia and Dr. Maria Fernandez: Thank you!

Alejandra Falconi: Well, let’s start by talking about what Community Health Alliance stands for, it’s the largest primary group in Washoe County providing services to everyone, families, all groups, but today we want to talk about pediatric services. Please talk to us about your pediatric services.

Dr. Maria Fernandez: At Community Health Alliance we help the whole family, starting with newborns. We also help the rest of the family. Your siblings, mom, dad, uncles, and grandparents. We offer services to everyone, and it doesn’t matter if they have insurance. We accept all patients.

Alejandra Falconi: What is the importance for a mother and father to establish care early on in pregnancy?

Dr. Maria Fernandez: The baby’s life begins when the mother is pregnant with the baby. It makes a big difference that they are established with WIC and are getting this education, and these services because they are in a favorable position and make life easier for them.

Alejandra Falconi: We also know Community Health Alliance is the largest WIC provider in Washoe County. Tell us what services you provide.

Irene Mejia: Yes, WIC is a supplemental nutrition program that is available for pregnant women, new mothers, babies, and children up to five years old. It is a little different from pediatric services. Participants must submit their separate application for WIC services and by the time they are approved, families can receive nutrition and breastfeeding education, supplementary food, including baby formula, referrals to social services, and much more.

Alejandra Falconi: Excellent! It is important that families look for this type of service, especially when the baby is small.

Irene Mejia: We can give you information not only when they are young but also when women are pregnant. This includes information about nutrition and how to feed babies after the newborn stage. We continue to give you information. It’s not only information that benefits the mother and baby, but also the whole family, including grandparents or parents living in the house.

Alejandra Falconi: Tell us what the requirements are to access WIC services.

Irene Mejia: To qualify for WIC services you must live in the state of Nevada, earn a certain amount of money, be pregnant, have a baby under six months, breastfeeding a baby under one. But we really welcome any caregiver for children under five years old. They can apply for the child. Those are our requirements.

Alejandra Falconi: Anything else you’d like to add about these resources?

Dr. Maria Fernandez: At Community Health Alliance, the incredible thing is that patients can receive medical services, WIC, pharmacies, mental health, dental, food. We really have many services.

Alejandra Falconi: Excellent! All resources are available to our community. Pediatric services, dental and WIC program, and much more. We will put the information on our social networks, the number, the address, all here on screen.

Alejandra Falconi: Thank you very much for visiting us, Dr. Fernandez and Irene, at Tu Cita de Salud (Your Health Appointment).

Irene Mejia and Dr. Maria Fernandez: Thank you!

For pediatric medical services, please call (775) 329-6300. To apply for the WIC program, please call (775) 870-4343. Both are accepting new patients and clients.