University of Cincinnati Department of Family and Community Medicine

Patty Davenport, Summer 2011

Working with the Family Medicine Department this summer has been an experience that I will always remember for it has had an impact on me in many ways. Through the various programs and sites that I worked for and with I have been exposed to so many situations, individuals, problems, and solutions dealing with medical care for the homeless.

Our main project this summer was working at the River Downs Racetrack Clinic. It is a clinic serving the migrant workers at the racetrack who mostly do manual labor jobs at the track. These individuals are technically homeless since they never have permanent housing during the year and they are constantly moving from track to track for work. I would often see the same patients each week and by the end of the summer I had gotten to know many of them very well. The experiences I have had with these patients is invaluable. Most of the workers live rough lives, often starting work at 3 am and working until late in the afternoon, and often make less than $1,000 a month. Many don't have any mode of transportation and so their entire life is at the track. Being able to receive free medical attention from the clinic makes an enormous difference in the workers' lives.

One of the most valuable lessons I have learned this summer came from being a patient advocate. If any patients from the track needed a referral to the hospital or to another clinic, it was my job to make sure all the correct paperwork was filled out and then submit it to the hospital and work to get them an appointment. What I learned was that the system is incredibly difficult to navigate, even for a medical student. There were moments in the summer where I would be incredibly frustrated because a financial aid application would get denied, more paperwork would be needed, or the patient was unable to get the correct forms we needed to get them free care. I got to know the patients whose referrals I was working on very well. I saw them in moments of anger and frustration both at their situation and at the difficulties of trying to prove their eligibility to get financial aid, but I also saw them in moments of happiness when they realized that I was there working and advocating for them in a system where people often go unnoticed. It made me realize that anything you can do to help someone is meaningful. Even if their application gets rejected three times and both patient and advocate are frustrated, it means something that you are there fighting for them and are willing to submit it yet again. When we finally got some of our patients financial aid this summer it was so great to see the happiness it brought them, knowing that they could now receive the care they needed for free.

I also worked at other sites with the Family Medicine Department, all of which dealt with the homeless population in Cincinnati. Every experience was profound in many different ways. Often the homeless in any city go unnoticed. This is because people don't want to see that they exist, feel uncomfortable around them, or believe the many stigmas that are out there regarding them. I loved working with this department because every homeless person was treated just as a person; a person who mattered, who had thoughts, feelings, ideas, and ambitions. They were given the care that any individual in the world deserves without any judgment or trepidation.

I know that my experience this summer will stay with me for the rest of my career regardless of what field I go into. I learned valuable lessons such as how much it can mean to a patient to have their doctor reach out to them in a time of need and be a support for them, medically and emotionally. I learned new medical techniques that can be specifically used to serve impoverished populations, and I learned how to navigate the system to get care for those who would otherwise not have access. I know these skills will stay with me and hopefully grow more throughout my life, and I thank the Family Medicine Department for taking time this summer to teach me these skills and to provide me with these experiences.