Bridge to Care: How a Medical School can Partner with a Public Health Department

On the border of DC, Prince George\u27s County, Maryland has a substantially low per capita number of primary care physicians (83 per 100,000 residents), lacking a primary care safety net for residents(1). Approximately 80,000 residents are uninsured, with high rates of chronic disease (asthma, obesity, HIV/AIDS) and low rates of preventative care(1). To address these disparities, The GW University School of Medicine and Health Sciences Healing Clinic, a student-run free clinic, created a unique partnership with the Prince George\u27s County Health Department to form the “Bridge to Care” Clinic. The partnership has two objectives: 1. to link those with insurance to a primary care physician within the county and 2. to be the only primary care access point for the uninsured within the Health Department. Student directed projects were undertaken to address each of the following obstacles: 1. limited no-cost or affordable care delivery options within the health department, and the county for referrals, 2. recognition of the spectrum of volunteer clinical experience and clinic capacity, 3. complex patient population with multiple chronic comorbidities, limited resources, and frequent language barriers. First, an assessment of the community health system sought to identify community partners where patients could be referred at no cost for services unattainable through the health department, such as: specialty care, legal services, or HIV support services. Second, a volunteer resource manual was developed to assist students through language barriers, simple protocols in clinic, history and physical exam, differential diagnoses, EMR documentation, and screening tools at the point of care. Lastly, a patient navigator program was created to address patients’ complex needs through adequate education, referrals, and follow up. Future work of the GW Healing Clinic must evaluate the impact of the student-directed initiatives on the partnership and primary care delivery to those underserved in the DC metro area