Tepeyac Community Health in Colorado builds talent to fill health care workforce needs

Tepeyac Community Health Center is a beacon of hope for many people in Colorado.

For more than 30 years, Tepeyac has worked to bring high quality, affordable health care to underserved communities in Denver.

Building talent is part of that mission.

Paulina Segovia is a physician’s assistant at Tepeyac. She sees 20 patients a day on average, providing primary care and filling a need.

“I just fell in love with helping the community that basically raised me and being able to give back to people that I identify with,” said Segovia.

Segovia trained at Tepeyac, while studying to be a physician’s assistant at Red Rocks Community College.

Her grandparents were doctors in Monterrey, Mexico. And Segovia grew up marveling at how they healed their neighbors.

“My grandfather’s a magician. How was he able to help people?” asked Segovia. “And I grew up very much wanting and desiring that magic. I wanted to help people like he was helping people.”

Segovia spends her days going back and forth between English and Spanish, providing the culturally competent care that’s Tepeyac’s hallmark.

“The art of medicine really is interacting with patients and being able to provide that compassionate care,” added Segovia.

Tepeyac Community Health provides more than 17,000 patient visits a year. The focus on personalized and preventive care saves health systems millions of dollars annually.