Health disparities and underserved populations: a potential solution, medical school partnerships with free clinics to improve curriculum.

Health disparities and underserved populations: a potential solution, medical school partnerships with free clinics to improve curriculum. Med Educ Online. 2015;20:27535 Authors: VanderWielen LM, Vanderbilt AA, Crossman SH, Mayer SD, Enurah AS, Gordon SS, Bradner MK Abstract Health-care educators share the social responsibility to teach medical students about social determinants of health and health-care disparities and subsequently to encourage medical students to pursue residencies in primary care and medical practice in underserved communities. Free clinics provide care to underserved communities, yet collaborative partnerships with such organizations remain largely untapped by medical schools. Free clinics and medical schools in 10 US states demonstrate that such partnerships are geographically feasible and have the potential to mutually benefit both organizational types. As supported by prior research, students exposed to underserved populations may be more likely to pursue primary care fields and practice in underserved communities, improving health-care infrastructure. PMID: 25907001 [PubMed - in process]
Source: Medical Education Online - Category: Universities & Medical Training Tags: Med Educ Online Source Type: research