’Tis every season to be serving

The holiday season is upon us and as we, Rhode Islanders, reflect on what is good about our state, let us not forget the acts of kindness and generosity that occur throughout all seasons, every day, at the Rhode Island Free Clinic.
There are over 1,200 free clinics throughout the country. Often referred to as a safety-net program, free clinics offer services for free, regardless of a person’s ability to pay. The first free clinic, Haight-Ashbury Free Medical Clinic in San Francisco, was started in 1967 to address the acute medical emergency of drug abuse among adolescents, and quickly grew to provide much needed medical care for an alienated population. The Rhode Island Free Clinic is here for the working poor, and other uninsured adults, who are not receiving care. Many states have a higher rate of uninsured adults than Rhode Island, and their need is way beyond what safety-net providers can address. Thanks to what all community and safety-net clinics are currently doing in Rhode Island, all are able, in a small way, to address the gap of approximately 50,000 uninsured Rhode Islanders. This is about the population of all of Bristol County.
The clinic is a nonprofit organization that delivers health care to uninsured adults, through a statewide volunteer delivery model, thanks to generous charitable donations from hundreds of Rhode Islanders. There is no patient fee, no state contribution at this time and no taxpayer fee. There is only the generosity of volunteers and donors who believe that everyone deserves access to health care. Our volunteers are doctors, nurse practitioners, interpreters, and many others who make the clinic run smoothly. They travel from all across the state, often after a full day’s work, to provide focused and compassionate care to people who would otherwise have none.
Volunteers include our donors and board members. All are dedicated to preserving the clinic’s mission to provide health care to uninsured adults who cannot afford care. Our donors span from regular people, similar to you and me, to caring Rhode Island companies like CVS Health, Amica, Ocean State Job Lot, Claflin, Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island, our hospitals, physician practices and other organizations. Some donors are former patients, one who sent the Cclinic $20 in an envelope with a note reading, “You saved my life – Thank you for caring for the health of our neighbors and me when I had no insurance.” Some give yearly, anonymously, or through our Founders Society. Regardless of their background, donors share the sentiments that every clinic dollar makes a difference to provide quality health care, and to reduce overall health care costs by diverting 600 costly emergency room visits, saving millions.
The clinic is a proven business model with low administrative costs, mobilized by volunteers and health-trainee students. In 2014 over 700 volunteers devoted 31,000 volunteer hours valued at $800,000. I still find it truly remarkable that, as a result of what Rhode Islanders are doing to support the clinic, a patient can receive over $10,000 of annual primary and preventive care at a cost of $500. It is a miracle to see how health care volunteers work together in a dedicated team to take care of our most vulnerable residents. And, it is heartwarming to know that adults who need care are able to get an appointment and are treated with the respect and dignity to access health care in the same way as those who have insurance.
The stories of the thousands of Rhode Islanders who are cared for at free clinics need to be heard. Stories like the woman with diabetes who is managed on insulin by an endocrinologist and diabetes nurse educator, the construction worker who receives treatment for back pain and onsite physical therapy, and the middle-aged woman newly diagnosed with cancer that, because of the clinic, is able to receive treatment early on and preserve the quality of her life. All of these lives, as well as the 2,000 others served each year at the clinic are changed because of volunteers and donors who help other Rhode Islanders.
So this season let us especially remember and honor the hundreds of volunteers and donors who give selflessly of their skills, money, and time to support the Rhode Island Free Clinic. It is more than giving back; it is about saving lives and reducing health care costs for all Rhode Islanders. With continued support, through volunteers and donations, the clinic can extend its care to many more Rhode Islanders in need of quality health care, because, after all, what is more important than the gift of health?