The John R. Moran, Jr. Leadership Award recipient:
Rocky Mountain Youth Clinics

Congratulations to the entire staff of Rocky Mountain Youth Clinics for their exemplary leadership in the community.

The Colorado Trust announced Rocky Mountain Youth Clinics (RMYC) as the recipient of its 2010 John R. Moran, Jr. Grantee Leadership Award. The annual award of $25,000 is made in recognition of exemplary leadership by a current grantee of The Colorado Trust and was used by RMYC to support its ongoing efforts to bring medical and dental services to Colorado children and adolescents who would otherwise have no access to care.

RMYC began as a single clinic in 1996, providing 2,000 patient visits per year. Today, it has grown into a network of three traditional clinics, two mobile clinics and 40 community- and school-based settings that provide more than 55,000 patient visits per year, making RMYC one of the largest pediatric safety-net providers in the United States. While the majority of the patients are seen at clinics in Denver, Aurora and Thornton, RMYC also operates smaller, satellite clinics through partnerships with other community organizations statewide – from homeless shelters and treatment centers, to schools and community agencies. Over the past two years, RMYC has served more than 24,000 unduplicated patients, totaling 106,200 visits.

Among three of its school-based health centers, the Judy Edberg Kids Clinic at Crawford Elementary School is particularly successful. Since opening its doors two years ago, it has increased by 35% the number of medical, dental and mental health visits completed. That translates to 2,539 visits for the 2009-2010 school year. Due to growing need in Aurora Public Schools, a second school-based health center opened for three days a week in September 2010 at Laredo Elementary, and had 472 patients in its first six months.

RMYC also operates two Ronald McDonald Care Mobiles that allow the agency to bring medical and dental services to nearly 3,300 children and adolescents annually in local communities who would otherwise have no access to care. An additional care mobile provides services to seven Denver Public Schools (DPS) and nine Aurora Public middle and high schools.