Community Health: MedStar Georgetown University Hospital

• Cancer Prevention and Navigation for the Underserved has partnered with the District of Columbia Primary Care Association to increase screening rates for breast, colorectal and cervical cancer and support access to quality care. Once patients are identified as due for screenings, the navigators work to ensure the patients is referred to appropriate cancer screenings and, as needed, diagnosis and treatment. Annually, the program touches over 2,000 patients.
• School-Based Health Clinics at Anacostia High School (Ward 8) and Roosevelt High School (Ward 4) provides adolescent services in two permanent school locations through a partnership with DC Department of Health and DC Public Schools. We implemented the Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child model by providing adolescent health, primary care, mental health screenings and health education to more than 1,100 students annually.
• Primary Care Residency Program at Fort Lincoln Family Medicine Center, to support severe shortage of primary care physicians in DC, our Family Medicine Residency Program has filled the gap since 1977. The community clinic provides a full spectrum of health care to 8,000 low-income children and adults, including primary care, behavioral health, obstetrics, pediatrics, adolescents and geriatric care.
• Catholic Charities Partnership patients referred by Catholic Charities receive free (or nominal expense) for outpatient and inpatient care. In FY23, over 1,200 visits and nearly 250 patients were served under this program.
• Patient Financial Services provides financial assistance to uninsured patients who reside within the communities we serve by assisting with enrollment in publicly-funded entitlement programs, refer patients to State or Federal Insurance Exchange Navigator resources and assist with consideration of funding that may be available from other charitable organizations

Health and Wellness

MedStar Georgetown University Hospital has a long-standing commitment to community pediatrics and family health wellness programs in the District. The hospital also recognizes that to meet the community needs, it needs to travel and embed our clinical resources within the most at-risk neighborhoods.

• The KIDS Mobile Medical Clinic program extends well into the community, through its clinic-on-wheels. The mobile clinic provides comprehensive health and social services five days week in DC Wards 6 &7. The mobile van brings medical care into communities in need, using a multi-disciplinary approach. This clinic reaches 800 children and adolescents annually, plus public housing where 2,000 children reside, and a residential charter school for children affected by the foster system. For more than 26 years, the KIDS Mobile Clinic has served more than 7,000 children through 60,000 patient visits.
• Mobile FITNESS Van a second van, operated by Community Pediatrics travels to and partners with DC Public School to address childhood obesity. The van provides weight management, nutrition and physical activity counseling and medical assessments. Students and families connect with a pediatrician, exercise physiologies, dietician and public health educator. FITNESS (Fun in Teaching Nutrition and Exercise to Successful Students) works through the school into communities to create healthy living practices in families with food insecurities and limited access to physical activities. The FITNESS Van services five DC public and charter schools in Wards 6, 7, and 8. Note: Due to COVID this service transitioned to food delivery.
• Caring in the Home provides “eyes-on and hands-on” in-home visits by a Nurse Practitioners for patients that have undergone surgical procedures and have been discharged home. To enhance the post-discharge care and safety of these patients following certain surgeries, weekly home visits are made.

Social Determinants of Health

MedStar Georgetown University Hospital invests in programs and partnerships that address the social needs of patients and community members.

• Training Physicians in the Community MedStar Health is invested in training future physicians, nurses and other clinical leaders, and equipping them with training opportunities that provide exposure to the diverse needs of the populations they will care for through the HOYA Clinic to learn about how social determinants of health play a role in the overall wellness of the patient and impact the care and services patients need. HOYA Clinic teams provide services at DC homeless shelters, perform physical exams on clients seeking asylum in the United States, and provide OB and gynecology care.
• Transportation in partnership with Uber, MedStar has created a convenient ride option program with a reliable means of transportation for vulnerable patients to medical appointments and health education activities.