Free clinic plays role in health care training

The Iowa City Free Medical and Dental Clinic (FMC) plays an essential role in the care of the poor and uninsured of our community. What is less well-known is that it also plays an important role in the education and training of health care providers. As a medical and public health student, my involvement with this clinic has pushed me to grow professionally and personally, and I firmly believe that I will be a better provider and community advocate because of it.

The most common way for students to be involved with the clinic is as volunteers. The FMC relies heavily on volunteers to fill most of the roles at the clinic: interpreters, patient guides, receptionists, clinic coordinators, pharmacists, dentists, providers and more. These roles are filled by a wide range of dedicated and talented community members.

For medical, physician assistant and nursing students who take advantage of the opportunity, the FMC helps them develop skills appropriate for their level. Those with language skills can maintain fluency and develop their medical vocabulary as interpreters. Beginning students can practice basic clinical skills, honing their abilities to take thorough but succinct histories and reliable vitals. Once they have completed qualifying medical rotations, advanced students are able to see patients on their own as providers.

The amount of learning that comes with independently conducting a visit, developing an assessment and plan, and then discussing these with a supervising physician who is excited to teach cannot be overstated. This is the premise of medical residency, and I know many students who have grown tremendously through this model at the FMC.

This growth extends far beyond medical knowledge. Providers at the FMC are faced with balancing a wide range of factors including complex social situations, access to care, limited patient resources, limited clinic resources and difficult follow-up. While these factors are important in any medical setting, when working with an organization like the FMC, they become absolutely central. Students learn to wade through this quagmire with the help of knowledgeable staff. The resulting awareness and thoughtful decision-making are not only practical but will be essential as our health care economy and policies develop, regardless of medical specialty or setting.

I have had the opportunity to approach these issues on another level as a member of the Board of Directors. There is no better way to learn about running a nonprofit community clinic and the real-world effects of health care policy than to work in the middle of it. Being a board member has also given me the chance to work alongside professionals with expertise in everything from law to finances, allowing me to learn from their insight and experience while working to move the clinic forward. Being a board member has shaped my perspective of community medicine in action, and it has inspired me to continue this kind of work throughout my career.

The FMC provides numerous other ways to be involved, and each offers unique insight into medicine and health care. As I move on to a residency and career in family medicine, I am filled with gratitude for the perspective, skills and mentorship I have received at the Iowa City Free Medical and Dental Clinic, as well as for a community that recognizes its importance and continues to support it.

I urge future medical, physician assistant and nursing students as well as mentoring providers to take advantage of these opportunities. Not only does our community have great need for this service now, but it is through these experiences that we continue to learn and grow to better serve our patients and our communities in the future.

Andrea Mulhausen Johnson has served on the Free Clinic’s Board of Directors since 2012. She will receive her medical degree from the University of Iowa’s Carver College of Medicine and her Master of Public Health degree from the College of Public Health in May. She will begin her residency in family medicine this summer at the Allina Family Medicine Residency in St. Paul, Minn.