Student-Run Free Clinics Stand at a Critical Junction Between Undergraduate Medical Education, Clinical Care, and Advocacy

Bibliographic Data

ID21613838
AuthorsDeborah D Rupert (0000-0002-3426-3912, D.D. Rupertis a seventh-year MD–PhD student, Medical Scientist Training Program, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York, and Department of Neuroscience, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, New York; ORCID:.), George V Alvarez (G.V. Alvarezis resident physician, Department of Family Medicine, Northwell Glen Cove Hospital, Glen Cove, New York.), Eric J Burdge (E.J. Burdgeis a fourth-year medical student, Long Island School of Medicine, New York University, Mineola, New York; ORCID:.), Roxanna J Nahvi (R.J. Nahviis a sixth-year MD–PhD student, School of Medicine and Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, New York Medical College, Valhalla, New York; ORCID:.), Spencer M Schell (S.M. Schellis resident physician, Department of Family Medicine, OhioHealth Grant Medical Center, Columbus, Ohio; ORCID:.), Francis Faustino (Island Hospital, corresponding author), Francis L Faustino (F.L. Faustinois assistant professor and chair, Department of Family Medicine, NYU Langone Hospital–Long Island, Mineola, New York.)
Year2022
Volume97
Issue6
Pages824-831
Publication date2022-06-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueAcademic Medicine (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1040-2446 • E-ISSN: 1938-808X
PublisherOxford University Press (OUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1097/acm.0000000000004542
PMID34817408
OpenAlexW3215383391
LanguageEN
Citations received10
References cited73

Student-run free clinics (SRFCs) act as primary care providers that bring health care to populations in need and are an important source of undergraduate medical education (UME), guiding trainees through the art of history taking and physical examination. However, they are also social justice and advocacy initiatives—addressing disparity in access to care and educating medical trainees with firsthand exposure to socioeconomic determinants of health as well as language and medical illiteracy barriers. Here, the authors review academic literature examining the impact of SRFCs in their 3 roles: as medical care providers, as components of medical education, and as advocacy organizations. Based on the evidence of that literature and decades of direct SRFC leadership experience, the authors make the case that SRFCs are an undersupported means by which UME institutions contribute to correcting health care disparities and to serving social justice reform

Environmental health · Free clinic · Functional illiteracy · Health care · Health care reform · Health equity · Medical education · Political science · Public health · Socioeconomic status · Innovations in Medical Education · Interprofessional Education and Collaboration · Medicine · Nursing · Primary Care and Health Outcomes · Psychology · Health Policy