Six free clinics serving under-resourced communities now have the ability to provide timely, quality laboratory test results to their patients, on site, in a single visit, thanks to a grant program funded by global med-tech company BD, implemented by Heart to Heart International (HHI) and the National Association of Free and Charitable Clinics (NAFC) and supported by Henry Schein Medical.
This competitive grant program provides free clinics with point-of-care diagnostic technology*, and BD volunteers and HHI staff and volunteers also provide training to help clinic staff learn how to use the new technology to provide better, more responsive care to patients. Armed with this training and technology, participating clinics are able to provide diagnostic testing and results to patients on-site, so they can quickly identify and help patients manage chronic illnesses including diabetes, high cholesterol and hypertension, among others.
Clinicians at these six free clinics will now be able to use test results to adjust medications on the spot, preventing potentially life-threatening delays.
According to Dalia Gonzales, Clinic Coordinator at People’s Health Clinic in Park City, UT, the “new equipment and staff knowledge is essential to our patient care and clinical operations.”
The six clinics awarded the Point of Care Enhancing Clinical Effectiveness grant for 2021:
Heart Ministry Center in Omaha, Nebraska, provides free, walk-in medical care to more than 2,000 patients each year, 46 percent of whom live under the poverty line. The clinic also offers community members access to a food pantry, job placement program and case management.
Community Care Clinic of Rowan County in Salisbury, North Carolina, provides primary medical and dental care as well as prescription medications to underserved and uninsured adults in Rowan County, North Carolina. The clinic treated more than 1,100 clients in 2020, 96% of whom report an improvement in health thanks to the clinic. The clinic also operates a full-service pharmacy with a licensed pharmacist who discuss medications, diet and lifestyle with patients and works to provide access to free medications for patients through various pharmaceutical companies.
Centre Volunteers in Medicine in State College, Pennsylvania, offers quality free of medical, dental and behavioral health services to struggling families in the area. Last year, the clinic provided medical and dental care to more than 1,000 individuals, prescriptions to almost 400 patients, case management services to more than 300 people, and behavioral health services to 100 patients.
Grace Clinic of Yadkin Valley in Elkin, North Carolina, provides medical care to patients from 13 communities in Surry, Wilkes and Yadkin counties. The clinic also offers behavioral health specialists and dental services and participates in NC Med Assist to acquire generic medications at no cost to its patients.
People’s Health Clinic located in Park City, Utah, provides no-cost, health, prenatal, vision and mental health services to uninsured residents of Summit and Wasatch counties. The clinic also provides diabetes education and children’s vaccination programs and was recognized by the Utah Million Hearts Coalition for Excellence in Blood Pressure Control.
Volunteers in Medicine Berkshires (VIM) is a free clinic in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, that provides comprehensive medical, restorative dental, behavioral health, optometry, nutrition and exercise counseling, integrative pain management and round trip transportation services to patients in its community.
* These diagnostic products are considered Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendment-waived donations
