A mobile van that offers free examinations and medicine to homeless and uninsured youth observed its 10th anniversary recently, with organizers citing thousands of Bay Area kids helped.

The Teen Health Van, funded through philanthropic support, rotates through sites in San Mateo, Santa Clara and San Francisco counties.

Known officially as the Lucile Packard Children's Hospital Mobile Adolescent Health Services Program, the Teen Health Van is affiliated with the Children's Health Fund, a national network of clinics for underserved youth.

"By providing a medical home and focusing on prevention and early intervention, we can help kids get off the streets and into housing, school and jobs," said Dr. Seth Ammerman, the van's medical director and a professor of adolescent medicine at the Stanford School of Medicine.

Ammerman said that according to research estimates, $4 is saved in down-the-road health costs for every dollar spent on preventative services.

Each recipient of care receives a comprehensive physical and mental health evaluation, along with interventions targeted to individual circumstances. Confidential help is given for fighting substance abuse, poor nutrition and chronic diseases such as asthma and diabetes. The staff also provides HIV counseling, birth control and other preventative education.

More than two of three visitors to the van return repeatedly, officials said.

"Many homeless adults started as homeless youth who didn't get the help they needed," Ammerman said. "The good news is that we've made a difference during the past 10 years. The bad news is that there are still many more kids who need our services."

For more information, go to www.lpch.org

— Bay City News Service