Modesto clinic dedicated in honor of homeless man

Alfred “Al” Hunt was not the kind of guy who would serve on the board of an organization with a $80 million budget.

The Modesto man was homeless and was said to have spent nights next to the Tuolumne River under the Highway 99 bridge.

Wednesday, Golden Valley Health Centers honored Hunt by dedicating the Corner of Hope clinic on Sixth Street in his memory. Hunt, a Golden Valley board member for four years, died last year in Missouri, where he was caring for his sister.

One of 27 clinical sites operated by the Merced-based nonprofit, the Corner of Hope serves homeless patients who face some of the toughest barriers to health care.

Representatives of Golden Valley and federal, state and local agencies were in attendance when a plaque honoring Hunt was unveiled.

“He was my friend. I miss him like crazy,” said John Price, Golden Valley’s board president.

Hunt was a Marine Corps veteran and held a bachelor’s degree in sociology. He didn’t fit the stereotype of the homeless man who wanders the streets. According to a biography, he enjoyed bass fishing and collecting antiques.

Hunt served with the U.S. forces in Vietnam and told a story of being on the last helicopter to escape Saigon in April 1975, when the city fell to the communists.

In 2011, Hunt was appointed as a consumer member on the board over Golden Valley clinics, which provide primary care to 110,000 patients in Stanislaus and Merced counties. People who knew him tell of his passion for improving health services for the poor and underserved.

Hunt, who always wore a Marine veteran’s hat, strongly supported a respite care approach to managing care for homeless individuals, who often have complex medical issues.

Patients are assigned to a care team, including a nurse clinical manager, social worker and other staff, which ensures they are tapping into services, said Jason West, a program analyst for Merced County Rescue Mission and a Golden Valley board member.

Golden Valley provides case management in a respite care partnership with Mercy Medical Center in Merced and hopes to develop more of those services. So far, it is not done for the homeless in Stanislaus County.

In Modesto, about 1,000 homeless people receive primary care at the Corner of Hope, which handles 5,000 patient visits a year. The clinic is staffed by one physician and does outreach to enroll the homeless in the Medi-Cal program.

“We recognize that is a small contribution to solving a big problem,” Golden Valley Chief Executive Officer Tony Weber said.

When the homeless don’t have access to clinics, their other option is the hospital emergency department, where the care is extremely expensive. Those kinds of ER visits are one reason that 10 percent of patients account for about 75 percent of U.S. health care utilization costs.

Hunt benefited from the health services received at local safety-net clinics.

“He told anyone who would listen that Golden Valley saved his life,” said Mary-Michal Rawling, director of governmental affairs.

This story was originally published August 10, 2016 at 7:13 PM with the headline "Modesto clinic dedicated in honor of homeless man."