JeffHOPE

JeffHOPE operates five weekly clinics in Philadelphia, and we depend on medical students volunteering their time, effort, and skills to keep these clinics running. Committee Directors are third-year medical students who previously served as committee members and were elected by the previous board of directors. Committee Members are first year medical students elected by the current board of directors and assigned to specific clinic and committee. All positions require a substantial, weekly time commitment including the hours spent at clinic and additional, flexible time spent working on committee-related projects.

All first-year medical students at Sidney Kimmel Medical College interested in contributing to JeffHOPE are encouraged to apply for a committee member position. Students do not need to have previously volunteered at JeffHOPE to apply – the best applicants demonstrate a empathy and passion for the vulnerable communities we serve. Information sessions are held in early fall; please reach out to JeffHOPEdirector@jefferson.edu with any questions. 

Advocacy (ADVO)

Advocacy is one of the most utilized committees at JeffHOPE, as they connect patients with services outside the scope of a traditional medical visit. This can range from helpng patients apply for insurance, to referring patients to new primary care or specialist doctors, facilitating follow-up with previous physicians, to counseling patients on community resources. Overall, this process empowers patients to achieve autonomy over their own healthcare, once they are equipped with the available tools, knowledge, and resources. These resources are compiled into a central Community Resource Guide, which is updated and utilized by advocacy weekly. In addition, advocacy oversees the dissemination of supplies at our clinics, such as toothbrushes, soap, shampoo to shelter staff for the residents.

Education (EDU)

Education helps patients learn about health topics through one-on-one meetings to improve health literacy. Our most frequent topics covered include smoking cessation, nutrition, mental health management, skin condition education, birth control and pregnancy counseling, and chronic disease management. These committee members are trained extensively on the topics outlined above to provide clear, comprehensive education to our patients, using motivational interviewing skills and a trauma-informed approach. In addition, each committee member will develop an education project at their site under the guidance of the education director during their tenure at JeffHOPE.

Kids

Kids committee aims to provide safe, free childcare to residents of the family shelters we visit. Committee member roles and responsibilities include being a positive support system for the kids and addressing educational and developmental needs of the children through mentorship, literacy, and play. This committee facilitates several week-to-week functions as well as special activities designed to engage with children and foster a collaborative and judgement-free learning environment. In addition, our team helps identify and address health disparities seen in children at the shelter. Our goals are to enrich the lives of children both socially and academically, and to help bridge development gaps identified by social determinants of health, namely: Education access and quality, Healthcare, Social and Community Context, Economic Stability, and Neighborhood and Environment.

Medical Team

Medical team visits are conducted by a lower year (first- or second-year medical student), and upper year (third- or fourth-year student) and the preceptor (resident or attending physician). This medical team will work together to conduct a standard medical visit, including a focused history and physical exam, as well as an assessment and plan to address all issues identified. All patients who need an acute medical visit are seen by the whole medical team, including the students and the precepting physician. Any student at Sidney Kimmel Medical College can sign up to volunteer as a medical team volunteer with JeffHOPE; however, prior to attending clinic, students must complete a JeffHOPE-specific training on working with vulnerable patient populations and trauma-informed care, which is offered several times per year.

Clinic Coordinators

Clinic Coordinators are responsible for staffing our Medical Team upper and lower year medical students and preceptors for all five JeffHOPE clinics each week. Committee members who hold a weekly position at our clinic sites, have demonstrated excellent organizational skills, and have shown a deep dedicated to JeffHOPE are selected to be clinic coordinators. The position is vital to ensuring our patients can get acute medical care each week and we are deeply grateful for the work they do.

Community Partners

The Community Partners committee helps build and maintain relationships with local businesses, non-profits, and groups in the Philadelphia community to benefit our patients and our community. In the past, we have partnered with Vetri Kitchen to host cooking lessons at the family shelters we serve, book drives with local book stores, and supply drives with local schools. By fostering these relationships and discovering new ones, the community partners committee helps JeffHOPE acquire unique resources and opportunities for growth.

Pharmacy (PHARM)

Pharmacy is responsible for dispensing medications our clinics, under the supervision of the medical team preceptor. Committee members also conduct “Pharmacy Fast Track” visits for low-acuity medication needs; for these visits they see patients under the supervision of the medical team preceptor and formulate a plan to meet acute medical needs of their patients. Importantly, they are also responsible for tracking inventory of our medication supplies and ensuring these medications remain organized and accessible for use.

Publicity, Finance, & Operations (PFO)

This committee is responsible for ensuring that JeffHOPE’s day-to-day operations run smoothly, and that our organization exists for years to come. towards these goals by managing the budget, raising awareness of the important work we do. This committee increases support for JeffHOPE through planning and executing events throughout the year that highlight JeffHOPE's mission and achievements within the community. This committee is also responsible for all financial activities of JeffHOPE including overseeing the budget, placing orders, and optimizing resource management. Additionally, these directors organize and execute the annual JeffHOPE ball, which is JeffHOPE’s largest fundraising event of the year, attended by over 500 students and faculty members.

A few committee members who hold a weekly position at one of our clinic sites, who have demonstrated interest in the behind-the-scenes work at JeffHOPE, are selected to join this committee. These committee members are vital in assisting the PFO directors in organizing orders, as well as planning and executing events.

Screening & Procedures (PROC)

Screening and procedures is responsible for performing all therapeutic and diagnostic procedures at our clinic. These include blood draws, vaccinations, wound care, and more. Committee members conduct these visits with the utmost care and sensitivity, as they are responsible for counseling patients on the procedures performed, obtaining informed consent, and coordinating appropriate follow up. They are trained and guided by the screening and procedures director to ensure their comfortability with performing these skills, and to ensure a trauma-informed approach is implemented.

Triage (TRI)

Triagers attend their assigned clinic each week and are typically the first point of contact for patients as they present to clinic. They talk to patients about their concerns and determine what resources the clinic can provide them. Triagers then room the patients and coordinate the visits with their fellow committee members to ensure smooth and efficient clinic flow. 

Quality Improvement (QI)

Quality Improvement investigates our clinic processes with the goal of improving efficiency, satisfaction, and outcomes for our patients. Committee members work closely with the quality improvement director and their clinic directors to implement projects designed using the Plan, Do, Study, Act (PDSA) cycle in order to improve gaps in care and services. They are encouraged to develop their own questions and projects at JeffHOPE at their specific clinics, and collecting project-related data.  In addition, committee members are encouraged to facilitate organization-wide quality improvement efforts, as well, and are responsible for collecting clinic data weekly, which is reviewed at director meetings several times per year.