College of Nursing alumna builds fleet of mobile health clinics

Some time after earning her master's from the Wayne State University College of Nursing, Jordana Latozas, MSN '10, RN, ACNP, lost a patient.

"She was 25 years old, and she died from a relapse and overdose because she struggled to find transportation to the doctor's office to get her medication refilled," Latozas said. "We live in the United States of America, in Oakland County, one of the most affluent counties in the nation. Why is this happening?"

That loss inspired Latozas to create the Recovery Mobile Clinic, a primary care facility in an RV, in February 2020. Today, the nonprofit has grown with five RVs and a staff of 30, including nine nurse practitioners. They conduct more than 2,000 patient visits a month across Flint, Lansing and metro Detroit, offering addiction treatment, primary care, psychiatric services, wound care, Narcan distribution, hepatitis C screenings and more.

Her interest in addiction medicine began early in life. Latozas comes from a family affected by alcohol use disorder, but she didn't have the same struggle. "I always wondered, 'Why did that not suck me in?'" she said. "'Why was I not that same way?'"

That curiosity drew her toward addiction medicine. While working at Detroit Receiving Hospital, a mentor encouraged Latozas to apply for a scholarship at Wayne State, whose nursing programs she'd long admired.

Once enrolled in the Master of Science in Nursing program, two faculty members left a mark. Dr. Mary Anne McCoy kept students motivated through the intensity of the accelerated track. The late Dr. April Vallerand helped Latozas develop the model for what would become the Recovery Mobile Clinic.

That model is what sets the clinic apart. Unlike most mobile health operations that rely on grants or hospital affiliations, Recovery Mobile Clinic is self-sustaining. It's classified as a primary care office, allowing it to bill insurance on a fee-for-service basis. Patients without insurance receive free care, and three full-time case managers offer to help them enroll in Medicaid.

The revenue from insured patients lets Latozas offer competitive wages, paid time off, sick leave and health insurance. This keeps her staff consistent and well-compensated, making the clinic reliable - a necessity in mobile health, where inconsistency erodes community trust.

The clinic is still expanding. Ultimately, Latozas wants to franchise the model, teaching nurse practitioners how to launch their own mobile clinics in other regions.

"My goal is to build a nurse practitioner army that's out there addressing addiction and substance use disorder and mental health gaps in the community," she said, "and trying to really put nursing back at the forefront of community health medicine, which is treating the patients where the patients are. Let's be honest: That's what nurses were set up to do."

Latozas is also working to intervene earlier. She's observed that job loss often sends patients into a downward spiral of addiction. She's now approaching manufacturers, distribution centers and health care facilities about bringing Vivitrol injections - a non-addictive opiate blocker approved for safety-sensitive jobs - directly to workplaces, keeping people in recovery without missing work.

The clinic welcomes students from nursing, medicine, social work and criminal justice programs to shadow staff, hoping to make addiction medicine less intimidating and teach the next generation of providers how to work within a community.

For nursing students considering a similar path, Latozas is direct: Build a network of mentors, even outside your specific field, and don't let inexperience stop you.

"It takes a lot of work and dedication, but it's worth it," she said. "When I stand up on one of our stations in the morning and watch six teams roll out knowing they're all going out to help patients every day, it's empowering to know you built that."

Gifts to Wayne State University College of Nursing empower students to address health disparities and advance health care in Detroit and beyond. Visit nursing.wayne.edu/giving for more information.