1. Diamond Powell1,7, Katherine Magerko2,3,7, Dr. Irfan Ahmad4,7, Ben Mueller5,7, Paven Aujla3,7, and Samuel Logan6,7
1. Department Kinesiology Community Health, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, UIUC; 2. Department of Human and Community Development, College of ACES, UIUC; 3. Medical Scholars Program, UIC/UIUC; 4. Micro and Nanotechnology Laboratory, College of Engineering, UIUC; 5. Agriculture and Consumer Economics, College of ACES,
UIUC; 6. College of Nursing, UIC; 7. Avicenna Community Health Center Volunteer, Champaign, IL
Illinois Students Working to Promote Health Equity through
Avicenna Community Health Center
Acknowledgments
Thank you to Avicenna Community Health Center Board of Directors , Donors
and Volunteers for their work in the community; the Focal Point Grant, an
initiative of the Graduate College, for making this year’s interactive seminar
series, outreach, and symposium possible; the Department of Kinesiology and
Community Health for making the volunteer internship possible that led to the
creation of this poster; and to Sam Logan Photography for three of the photos
presented on this poster.
Conclusions
Witnessing first hand and publically discussing important
health issues prepares UIUC students to:
• Connect with people of all classes, races, ethnicities, and
beliefs.
• Gain firsthand experience on how to work in a resource
limited health care setting.
• Become leaders that create solutions that ameliorate
health disparities.
• Promote health equity for all throughout their careers.
About the Clinic
Opening it’s doors in 2010, Avicenna has served over
2,300 patient visits while working towards its three fold
mission:
 To provide healthcare for the uninsured and underinsured
 To engage in preventive healthcare through community
health screenings
 To promote health awareness through education and
information dissemination
They serve patients in the clinic with the following needs:
 Routine or work related physical examinations
 Chronic Disease Management for Hypertension,
Hypercholesterolemia, and Diabetes
 Lifestyle and Nutrition Coaching
 Pharmacy Prescription Assistance
Introduction
Students from a variety of disciplines have been volunteering
with Avicenna Community Health Center for over five years.
Through this collaborative work, undergraduate, graduate and
professional students from a variety of disciplines have had a
chance to broaden their horizons volunteering in this health
care context. Students have had the unique experience of
working as a team to promote preventative health care in the
community. Together with community physicians and nurse
partitions these students have served uninsured adults in for
primary preventive services and chronic disease
management. Across the community at health fairs, soup
kitchens, food banks, and local festivals, students have been
promoting health by providing health screenings and
educational displays.
Several of the students
involved with Avicenna
have since been inspired
and were awarded a
UIUC Focal Point Grant.
This grant has funded an
interactive seminar series
using a multidisciplinary
approach focused on local and global health disparities.
Impact of Student Volunteers
Who are the student volunteers?
Students from an array of backgrounds and experiences
create a dynamic team. Our volunteers come from an variety
of studies at multiple levels of education including:
 Medicine
 Nursing
 Nutrition
 Public/Community Health
 Engineering
 Computer Science
What have they done?
Community Outreach
One way that students engage in the promotion of health
equity is through initiatives that discuss, inform, and support,
the wellness of the community. Examples of such initiatives
include six one-time health fairs this past fall.
Daily Bread Soup Kitchen Outreach
Our bi-monthly commitment to the Daily Bread Soup Kitchen
(DBSK) of Champaign, IL has allowed volunteers to make
connections with community members and build trust with
DBSK guests. Volunteers advocate for guests having a
personal doctor and access to primary care services. They
also help guests work towards a healthier lifestyle by
providing screenings and information to visitors.
Avicenna has also promoted wellness by using connections
with the local Walgreens branches to provide flu vaccine
clinics to the guests of DBSK.
Electronic Medical Records
A very ambitious computer science volunteer created a new
EMR platform specifically for Avicenna that will allow
encrypted, online scheduling and patient visit documentation.
Fifteen other volunteers have been diligently working since
summer 2014 to enter the approximately 1200 patient files.
Contributed to Decreasing Community Health Costs
The cost savings the clinic and its volunteers have contributed
to the community in Emergency Room Prevention are
between $828,000 and $1.7million. These numbers are
based on published costs of $1,233 as the median in 2008
for uninsured patients1 and $2,457 as the average ER cost in
2012 2.
Focal Point on Health Disparities
Avicenna volunteers came together from several disciplines to
create a three pronged approach to addressing health
disparities:
1. Five Interactive Discussion Events
2. Community Outreach Events Partnering with Avicenna
3. A Symposium on Promoting Health Equity (April 2nd, 2015)
Over 192 unique participants from 29 disciplines, 4 programs,
and 10 outside organizations have contributed to these
discussions and outreach events. Visit our website to learn
more: www.healthdisparities.illinois.edu
Church of Brethren
Health Fair
9/13/14
Healthier U Expo & Job
Fair at Douglass Park
9/20/14
Voter Education &
Registration Drive
9/30/14
Disability Resource
Expo: Reaching Our for
Answers 10/18/14
Community Health &
Wellness Fair
10/25/14
Rantoul City Schools
Resource Fair
11/7/14
Emergency Room…
No Care
56%
Other
14%
Fall 2014 Outreach
Clinic Volunteer Involvement Since 2010
Screenings Performed at DBSK
(over the past 2 years)
Student volunteers at the Healthier U Expo & Job Fair
WHERE WOULD PATIENTS GO IF THEY HAD NOT
SOUGHT CARE AT AVICENNA?
References
1. Caldwell, Nolan et al. “‘How Much Will I Get Charged for This?’ Patient Charges for Top
Ten Diagnoses in the Emergency Department.” PLoS ONE 8.2 (2013): 1–6.
2. Health Care Cost Institue. Health Care Spending Growth Slowed in 2012, But
Consumers Continued To Spend More Out‐of‐Pocket, Says New HCCI Report. N. p.,
2012.
Number of Volunteers 1,024
Clinic Man-hours Volunteered 3,070
Patients Served Since 2010
Total Patient Visits 2,344
Patients seen by Lifestyle & Nutrition Team 644
Total Clinic Hours 609