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 At the Columbus House shelter, students and faculty see patients who might otherwise not receive regular health care. “If that doesn’t work, what else could she try?” Dr. Gifford asks James Castle ’02, a student volunteer in Project HOPE. Two evenings each week, students from all the Yale health professional programs hold free clinics at three shelters for the homeless in New Haven. The students provide residents with health screenings, minor medical treatments, and service referrals, and they conduct workshops on the health issues particularly relevant to the different shelters. Yale University has a 300-year tradition of public service, and today almost 70 percent of Yale medical students volunteer in community service activities. The School of Medicine supports these activities through funding, faculty involvement, and organization. The student Committee Overseeing Volunteer Services coordinates student-run programs, distributes funds and other resources, and provides training. Robert Gifford, who retired in 1999 after three decades of teaching and administration at the Yale University School of Medicine, continues to be a preceptor in the clinic at Columbus House, the largest of the shelters served by Project HOPE. His public service activities have spanned four decades, from directing medical care in the Peace Corps in the 196os to teaching science to elementary- and middle-school children in New Haven since his “retirement.” A beloved and admired figure in the medical school community, he draws crowds as the auctioneer at the annual Hunger and Homelessness Auction, which raises over $25,000 each year from bids on items ranging from lunch with the secretary general of the United Nations to full attendance at a lecture by the second-year class. |
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Community Service Opportunities  Adolescent Substance Abuse Program (ASAP) teaches seventh-graders about the effects of drugs so they, in turn, can teach fifth graders. Anatomy Teaching Program brings students from New Haven’s science magnet high school to review dissections with first-year medical students. Bio II, a follow-up to the Anatomy Teaching Program, allows high school students to pursue an independent project under the mentorship of a medical student. Buddies Just for Kids sends teams of medical students to the inpatient unit of the Children’s Hospital to promote reading and other positive activities. Downtown Evening Soup Kitchen involves students in providing food for people in need. Health Professionals Recruitment Exposure Program introduces high school sophomores and juniors to careers in the health professions and provides mentoring to youth in the New Haven community. Homeless Outreach Program for Enrichment (HOPE) runs evening clinics in homeless shelters, providing triage, free screening, education, and peer counseling. Life Haven is a shelter for abused women where student volunteers provide support and counseling. Loaves and Fishes educates people about hypertension, diabetes, and other nutrition-related diseases when they receive food from a food pantry. New Haven Boys & Girls Club Under the auspices of Epidemiology and Public Health, provides mentors to children from the New Haven area. Science Tour Enrichment Program introduces fourth graders from New Haven public schools to the Yale Medical Center through workshops in physical diagnosis, cardiology, radiology, and microbiology. Spanish Friendly Visitor Program arranges for students who are fluent in Spanish to visit patients at Yale-New Haven Hospital to answer questions, translate complaints, and provide moral support. Student Prenatal Care Program pairs pregnant women with students who can serve as advocates, interpreters, and companions throughout the pregnancy. Students Teaching AIDS to Students (STATS) promotes AIDS awareness, education on HIV transmission, and discussion of social issues facing teenagers among ninth graders in the New Haven school system. Youth Onward conducts workshops on health and personal development for middle-school pupils. Youth Science Enrichment Project introduces elementary-school children to careers in health care. |
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Last modified: Wednesday, 11-Aug-2004 15:00:35 EDT. (PL) |