ALACHUA COUNTYCounty Profile: 1999 population 215,414. Thirty-three percent of the population is below 150 percent of the federal poverty level. The major city is Gainesville. Health Care Access: According to Medical Quality Assurance, in 1999, Alachua County had 1,289 medical doctors, 20 osteopathic physicians, 259 dentists, and 4,251 nurses actively licensed. Status of Volunteer Efforts: The Alachua County Organization for Rural Needs, Inc. (ACORN) Clinic, established in 1973, is located in the rural community of Brooker. The clinic provides medical, dental, and mental health services to low income residents in the tri-county area of Alachua, Bradford, and Union Counties. The United Way, Suwannee River Area Health Education Center (AHEC), grants, private donations, and sliding scale patient fees fund ACORN. A cadre of professional volunteers, many of who are connected to the University of Florida, Santa Fe Community College, or in private practice provides the care. Patient fees are based on a sliding scale according to income. The Equal Access Clinic, established in 1992, is provided free space in the Family Practice Medical Group in the city of Gainesville. The clinic provides primary medical care, specialty referrals, emergency dental referrals, and pharmacy services to the disenfranchised of the community one evening per week. University of Florida medical students, under the direction of a faculty physician preceptor, deliver the medical care. The University of Florida, Shands Hospital, private donations, and the local Medical Auxiliary fund the clinic. No residency requirements apply and no fees are charged to patients. The Helping Hands Clinic, established in 1989, is provided free space in the Salvation Army Homeless Shelter in the city of Gainesville. The clinic volunteers provide primary medical care, mental health counseling, and pharmacy services on a limited basis. Emergency dental vouchers are provided to the area’s homeless and transient population. These services are offered one evening per week. Churches, Veterans’ Auxiliary contributions, private donations, and material donations fund the clinic. There are no residency requirements or fees charged to patients. The Alachua County Medical Society Foundation, Inc.’s/We Care Physician Referral Network was Florida’s first comprehensive indigent care medical referral network. It is the We Care Physician Referral Network upon which all other existing We Care programs in Florida are based. After operating for several years, the network was formalized in 1990 to provide specialty referral services to indigent patients receiving primary medical care from the ACORN Clinic, the Family Practice Medical Group, Inc., and the Alachua County Health Department. The Alachua County Board of Commissioners currently funds the network through an arrangement with the Alachua County Medical Society. The network is considered a model of a public/private partnership and has received formal recognition from the Florida Medical Association, the Florida Department of Health, and the Alachua County Board of County Commissions. April 2000 has been proclaimed as "We Care Physician Referral Network Month" by the County Commission in celebration of this community treasure. The We Care Network coordinate three health care components: Specialty, Primary Care, and Oral Health. Over 650 physicians and dentists participate in the program. Additionally, the county’s three hospitals, Shands at AGH, North Florida Regional Medical Center, and Shands Hospital at UF, participate in the network by providing in and outpatient services. Many ancillary service providers such as day stay surgery centers, laboratories, home health agencies, dietitians, chiropractors, and physical therapists participate in the network. Network programs are generally for Alachua County residents, but out-of-county referrals are accepted and reviewed on a case-by-case basis for specialty medical care from rural underserved communities. No fees are charged for services, including necessary hospitalization.
In 1993, the Alachua County Dental
Association joined the network and began providing oral
health care services through Project: Dentists Care.
Services provided are general dentistry, oral surgery,
and endodontic The American Cancer Society, in partnership with the We Care Network and the Volunteer Health Care Provider Program, developed a pilot project called the "Early Diagnostic Initiative." This initiative seeks to provide early intervention and treatment to women with possible symptoms of breast cancer. The initiative provides free mammograms and/or sonograms to symptomatic, unsponsored, poverty level women residing in Alachua, Bradford, Dixie, Gilchrist, Lafayette, and Levy Counties. Since the inception of the We Care Network in April 1990, volunteer physicians, dentists, hospitals, and ancillary service organizations have provided over 13.8 million dollars in uncompensated care. The Network was declared a ‘community treasure’ by the Alachua County Board of County Commission and a proclamation adopted by the Commission declared April ‘2000 in celebration of the tenth anniversary of the We Care Physician Referral Network. The Alachua County Health Department utilizes many volunteers in a variety of both clinical and clerical settings. Clinical and professional volunteers (medical students and residents, physician assistant interns, nursing students, and health education interns) deliver services to residents of Alachua County. These services are provided in the primary care, family planning, STD, and AIDS clinics of the health department. It is estimated that over 14,000 hours of uncompensated volunteer health care services were delivered to health department patients during this reporting period. During that same period, volunteers provided 1,500 hours of documented clerical services within the health department. |
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Contact Information
Volunteer opportunities
contact the regional coordinator: Anthony_Campo@doh.state.fl.us Back to Top
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© 2000 Department of Health Last modified: August 21, 2000 15:54 |