Simpson Scott A, Long Judith A
University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
J Gen Intern Med. 2007 Mar;22(3):352-6. doi: 10.1007/s11606-006-0073-4.
Despite the popularity of medical student-run health clinics among U.S. medical schools, there is no information about how many clinics exist, how many students volunteer there, or how many patients they see and what services they offer.
We describe, for the first time, the prevalence and operation of medical student-run health clinics nationwide.
A web-based survey was sent to all 124 Association of American Medical Colleges allopathic schools in the 50 states.
Ninety-four schools responded (76%); 49 schools had at least 1 student-run clinic (52%). Fifty-nine student-run clinics provided detailed data on their operation. The average clinic had 16 student volunteers a week, and most incorporated preclinical students (56/59, 93%). Nationally, clinics reported more than 36,000 annual patient-physician visits, in addition to more non-visit encounters. Patients were predominantly minority: 31% Hispanic; 31% Black/African American; 25% White; 11% Asian; and 3% Native American or other. Most student-run health clinics had resources both to treat acute illness and also to manage chronic conditions. Clinics were most often funded by private grants (42/59, 71%); among 27 clinics disclosing finances, a median annual operating budget of $12,000 was reported.
Medical student-run health clinics offer myriad services to disadvantaged patients and are also a notable phenomenon in medical education. Wider considerations of community health and medical education should not neglect the local role of a student-run health clinic.
尽管美国医学院校中由医学生运营的健康诊所很受欢迎，但关于此类诊所的数量、有多少学生在那里志愿服务、接待了多少患者以及提供哪些服务等信息却并不存在。
我们首次描述了全国范围内由医学生运营的健康诊所的普遍性及运营情况。
向美国50个州的124所美国医学院协会下属的所有opathic医学院发送了基于网络的调查问卷。
94所学校做出了回应（76%）；49所学校至少有1个由学生运营的诊所（52%）。59个由学生运营的诊所提供了其运营的详细数据。平均每个诊所每周有16名学生志愿者，且大多数纳入了临床前学生（56/59，93%）。在全国范围内，诊所报告每年有超过36000次患者与医生的就诊，此外还有更多非就诊接触。患者主要为少数族裔：31%为西班牙裔；31%为黑人/非裔美国人；25%为白人；11%为亚洲人；3%为美洲原住民或其他族裔。大多数由学生运营的健康诊所既有治疗急性疾病的资源，也有管理慢性病的资源。诊所最常由私人赠款资助（42/59，71%）；在27个披露财务状况的诊所中，报告的年度运营预算中位数为12000美元。
由医学生运营的健康诊所为弱势患者提供了众多服务，也是医学教育中的一个显著现象。对社区健康和医学教育的更广泛考量不应忽视学生运营的健康诊所在当地所起的作用。
