San José Clinic Partners with CHPPR to Prevent Diabetes in Underserved Communities
Published: February 1, 2023
UTHealth Houston partner San José Clinic provides a wide variety of primary and specialty healthcare services to uninsured and underserved communities in Houston using a volunteer provider model. In addition, San José Clinic has partnered with The Center for Health Promotion and Prevention Research (CHPPR) to provide Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) referrals and with the UTHealth Houston Cizik School of Nursing to offer opportunities to Doctor of Nursing Practice students.
"For 100 years, the Clinic has continued to care for hardworking area residents with both primary and specialty care – a unique model in the charity healthcare space," said San José Clinic Chief Clinical Officer Adlia Ebeid, PharmD, BC-ADM, RPh. "The Clinic's goal is not just to treat illness but to encourage wellness by serving as a healthcare home for the uninsured."
San José Clinic offers more than 20 specialty services, including neurology, cardiology, gynecology, dermatology, dental care, behavioral health care, and physical therapy. Their robust and unique volunteer provider network consists of hundreds of volunteer physicians and specialists who donate their time and expertise to make these services available to uninsured and underserved patients.
"It is because of the generosity of this volunteer provider network that the Clinic is able to offer such a wide array of services," said Dr. Ebeid. "We work to generate robust bidirectional referral processes to ensure our patients have access to the multitude of resources in our community and with the intention to be good stewards of our resources by establishing partnerships."
San José Clinic has partnered with CHPPR's "Improving the Health of Americans through Prevention and Management of Diabetes, Heart Disease, and Stroke" project to provide referrals for patients at risk of diabetes to join the Harris County Public Health Diabetes Prevention Program. Enrollment in a DPP can cut a patient's risk of developing type 2 diabetes by 58% or more. As a result of these referrals, Dr. Ebeid expects to see decreased Diabetes rates among the Clinic's patients and a reduction in diabetes-related complications, hospitalizations, and emergency room visits.
"UTHealth has been instrumental in supporting our initiatives around chronic disease prevention and enhancing the quality of care for our patients," said Dr. Ebeid. "The DPP will alleviate our providers to focus their time on more complex patients and ensure better clinical outcomes and quality of life."
Following their partnership with CHPPR, San José Clinic has established a partnership with the UTHealth Houston Cizik School of Nursing. Three School of Nursing students, Hannah Aviles, Cinthya Mazuelos Urbina Jackson, and Colin Barney, are working with the Clinic to complete their required Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) scholarly projects. In addition, the students are conducting a quality improvement project to evaluate San José Clinic patients' use of their patient portal.
"This project aims to improve the health of patients served by the San José Clinic and the providers who provide their care," said DNP student Colin Barney, RN, BSN. "The information we gather will create more awareness for providers on the efficacy of prescribed treatments."
For more information on the San José Clinic, visit their website.