Conference Series Update
New Conference Series Brings Together University Community: Primary Care for Vulnerable and Underserved Populations
By Becky Levine, MS1
Medical students, family physicians, and general internists ask questions following the February meeting of PCVUP
On Wednesday, December 10th, 55 medical students, residents, and faculty congregated in Dr. Susan Glick’s home in Kenwood to hear a lecture on how to effectively care for the homeless population. Dr. David Buchanan, an expert in providing care for the homeless, delivered an informative and engaging lecture on best practices for working with this population. He specifically addressed the top five practices that promote the health of the homeless:
- Assist with Disability Applications
- Provide Housing
- Address Substance Abuse
- Provide Vaccines
- Promote Disease Prevention
Minna Chen, MS2, attended the event and commented that “the presenter’s research clearly arose from his personal passion for integrating medicine with social justice; it was a great example and inspiration for students who wish to do the same in the future.” Minna also said that she found it “equally exciting, if not more exciting…that so many people from University of Chicago at large were interested and excited about the topic.”
This enthusiasm among the audience was well demonstrated by the numerous questions they asked and experiences they shared about caring for homeless patients. The discussion that took place fostered a greater understanding of resources in Chicago for assisting the homeless as well as potential partnerships between health care providers.
Dr. Milton “Mickey” Eder, Dr. Tracy Muhammad, and Dr. Susan Glick mingle after a PCVUP meeting
The talk on providing health care to the homeless was the inaugural lecture in a conference series on Primary Care for Vulnerable and Underserved Populations (PCVUP). The initiative was founded by Dr. Glick, a primary care physician who cares for underprivileged patients at ACCESS Booker Family Health Center, a Federally Qualified Health Center located in Grand Boulevard. “Caring for and teaching about underserved and vulnerable populations is exhilarating, yet full of challenges. To address some of the challenges, we created the Primary Care for Vulnerable and Underserved Populations conference series,” says Dr. Glick. She leads the initiative along with Dr. John Schumann, Dr. Tracy Muhammad, Dr. Mindy Schwartz, and Dr. Doriane Miller.
The series aims to “give both primary care and future primary care providers the tools needed to work effectively with vulnerable and underserved populations in low resource environments,” according to Dr. Glick. It also strives to “foster a sense of community among those working with or interested in working with underserved and vulnerable populations, as well as generate opportunities for collaboration.”
Dr. Tracy Muhammad, another founder of the series who practices Internal Medicine at the ACCESS Booker Family Health Center with Dr. Glick, added that PCVUP strives to help primary care physicians “stay fresh” on “new information, studies, and technologies,” which are not formally taught to them after they complete their residencies. The series does this by fostering a “cohesive community of physicians who pass on information they learn in the underserved community to one another.”
The conference series will continue with monthly talks on “specialty and subspecialty medicine important for primary care (e.g., red eye, knee pain, depression) as well as topics related to vulnerable and underserved populations (e.g. homelessness, addiction)” says Dr. Glick. The next lecture, held in April, will involve a discussion of recognizing, responding to, and advocating for survivors of torture. This talk will be led by Dr. Mary Fabri, Senior Director of Torture and Treatment Services and International Training at Heartland Alliance, Marjorie Kovler Center. For more conference information, such as date and time, please refer to the Pritzker School of Medicine online calendar.
