 SOCIAL ACTION COMMUNITY HEALTH SYSTEM
Providing a Resource for the Underserved
SAC. When an abbreviation, an acronym, carries meaning and even emotion, there is a story to tell. From the Social Action Corps (SAC) located in a church basement 40 years ago, to Social Action Community Health System (SACHS) with a large clinic at the former Norton Air Base and two satellites, SACHS has come to mean many things to many people. Through the years it has been transformed from a project, to a system…a belief…even a way of life. On a superficial level, it is still a place to seek and provide health care. But for those who know it best, the clinics are a source of hope and security for those coming for care, and a place of fulfillment and connection for those seeking to provide care. It is a place where seasoned givers guide young professionals into the most satisfying aspect of their lives-learning to share love and compassion. SACHS has grown by far beyond a place that simply cares for an illness. It has become a place of seeking and security, struggling and finding. Where it is a pain in the mind or body, SACHS has come to symbolize a source of resolution and relief.
Our newsletter is a further step in connecting SACHS with its base in the community. SACHS has always been defined by community needs and continues to symbolize Loma Linda’s efforts to connect with the surrounding world. Over the past eleven years, since moving to Norton and expanding its operations, SACHS has come even closer to becoming both the voice of the community speaking to Loma Linda, as well as Loma Linda speaking to the community. In this role, it offers opportunities for young professionals to fulfill their God given desire for connecting with human need. Whether in the clinic or one of the many extra activities like CKC, CMC, Tutoring/Mentoring, counseling or health fairs, SACHS is a place of connections.
To illustrate these points with examples would be to tell SACHS’ story of everyday life. Patients unable to find a sympathetic and understanding ear. Young mothers confronting the challenge of pregnancy in an uncertain world. Chemically dependent homeless, unclear where they will find their next fix or food. HIV infected patients wondering who they can trust for understanding and help. Combative parents trying to learn child care while living apart. Chronic diabetics confronting the fear of mortality and the challenge of eating right and controlling weight. Mothers carrying the strain of a sick child with unknown symptoms. Those with limited English skills looking for someone to listen and care. These all make up the kaleidoscope of human need and potential who walk in SACHS’ doors every day.
Our patients often cannot articulate what they are looking for. And the committed team waiting for them, understand and know to look for missing clues, for unexpressed emotions, for confusing signals of fear and pain. Communication, whether verbal or emotional, is the key to unraveling the signs and symptoms of human need. One learns to look beyond the initial comment, the presenting complaint, or the brief diagnosis. Life does not come in simple packages with “yes” and “no” answers. It is complex, interrelated, and often confusing. Learning to speak this language of compassions and signals, of touching and listening, is what qualifies SACHS as a place of learning and caring. It is an incredibly valuable laboratory for the new professional, trained to pull symptoms from lists to match with diagnoses. They quickly recognize that care is not mechanical, devoid of emotion, but instead is a complex mix of intuition, knowledge, listening, and time. One cannot hasten that process. Hurry leads to misses and frustration. Quick conclusions are often wrong and regretted. Only experience can bring order and peace out of this mixture of languages, stress and pain.
It must be clear to all that the benefits of SACHS are at least a two way street. What is given comes back in understanding and relationships. Time invested pays dividends in focusing dreams and clarifying plans. Students and staff reconnect daily with the reasons for caring and commitment. Exhaustion at day’s end is comforted with the send of purpose and mission. Even low salaries are rationalized as the price of this connectedness with one’s inner self, the joy of making an impact in the lives of real people. To create this environment, 24/7/365, requires resolute commitment, interdependence, personal sacrifice, and a sense of personal value within each team member. That is hard to develop and even harder to maintain. When achieved and understood, it commands awe and respect. It symbolizes the best of Loma Linda, of “whole person care”, of professional education. It should be valued and supported by every member of this place we call Loma Linda. It is not our least for the most poor. It is our best for every Child of God.
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