Increasing Access to Specialized Dermatology Care: A Retrospective Study Investigating Clinical Operation and Impact of
- PDF / 343,129 Bytes
- 11 Pages / 595.276 x 790.866 pts Page_size
- 41 Downloads / 149 Views
ORIGINAL RESEARCH
Increasing Access to Specialized Dermatology Care: A Retrospective Study Investigating Clinical Operation and Impact of a University-Affiliated Free Clinic Thomas Hester . Reinie Thomas . Jean Cederna . Ann Marie Peterson . Julie Brown . Timothy M. Johnson . Kelly B. Cha
Received: September 24, 2020 Ó The Author(s) 2020
ABSTRACT Introduction: Our objective was to study the impact and clinical operation of an integrated model for free specialized dermatology care via collaboration between an academic institution and a nonprofit outpatient clinic through an analysis of patient demographics and care provided. Methods: Hope@UMHS is a partnership between the University of Michigan Health System (UMHS) and Hope Clinic (HC) which provides free specialty consultations to uninsured residents of Southeast Michigan. A retrospective chart review was completed for
patients referred to the UMHS Dermatology clinic as part of the HOPE@UMHS collaboration from April 2012 through February 2020. Results: Of the 294 referred patients, 264 were managed in 30 clinic sessions over 8 years, staffed by 92 unique volunteers. Patients most commonly presented with atopic dermatitis (10.5%), seborrheic dermatitis (7.9%), and actinic keratosis (7.4%). The majority of patients (68.2%) were prescribed at least one new medication. Nine skin cancers, including one melanoma, were diagnosed and treated. There were 102 procedures performed. Eighty-seven percent of patients received conclusive evaluation and treatment at the time of their consultation. Conclusion: Our experience illustrates that providing free, comprehensive dermatology care in a university hospital by partnering with a nonprofit clinic is both feasible and beneficial to the greater community. Keywords: Charity care; Free clinic; Free dermatology clinic; Free specialty care; Safety net
T. Hester R. Thomas T. M. Johnson K. B. Cha (&) Department of Dermatology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA e-mail: [email protected] J. Cederna A. M. Peterson J. Brown Hope Clinic, Ypsilanti, MI, USA T. M. Johnson Ganger Dermatology, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
Dermatol Ther (Heidelb)
Key Summary Points Indigent patients have limited access to specialized dermatology care. We retrospectively review a collaboration between an academic center and a community health center, providing free dermatology care in southeast Michigan over an 8-year period, to describe patient characteristics, diagnoses, management plans, and volunteerism. Our collaboration may serve as a model for providing dermatology care to underserved patients and important volunteer and learning opportunities to physicians, staff, and students.
DIGITAL FEATURES This article is published with digital features, including a summary slide, to facilitate understanding of the article. To view digital features for this article go to https://doi.org/10.6084/ m9.figshare.13118012.
INTRODUCTION The US healthcare system provides uninsured patients with only limited access to healthcare [1, 2]. Individuals with
Data Loading...
