Healthcare Heroes: Med School Wins Top Service Honor
The Association of American Medical Colleges, the main accrediting body for medical schools in the United States and Canada, has awarded Tulane University's School of Medicine its Spencer Foreman Award for Outstanding Community Service.
On Saturday (Nov. 6), the Tulane School of Medicine will receive a national service award from the Association of American Medical Colleges. At the ceremony, Tulane will present this video, produced by Mary Mouton of Mouton Media with assistance from Melinda Viles, design manager for Tulane communications.
The award, one of the 134-year-old organization's most prestigious honors, recognizes Tulane School of Medicine as a national leader for creating a network of community health centers; training its students to focus on community service; and empowering residents devastated by Hurricane Katrina to take charge of their personal health as well as the health of their communities.
“In the past five years since the storm, Tulane University School of Medicine has played an integral role in transforming healthcare delivery in our community,” said Dr. Benjamin P. Sachs, Tulane senior vice president, medical school dean and the James R. Doty Distinguished Professor and Chair. “We have worked hard to create a culture at Tulane that empowers students, faculty, staff to improve the health of communities locally and around the world.”
First- and second-year Tulane medical students collectively commit to more than 10,000 community service hours each year, and Tulane students run three free healthcare clinics the Fleur de Vie Clinic at Covenant House, a TB screening clinic at Ozanam Inn and a clinic at Bridge House, a New Orleans substance abuse center.
Medical students also take part in the Tulane Rural Outreach Initiative, performing clinical rotations in underserved rural communities. One quarter of all applicants to U.S. medical schools this past year applied to Tulane, many citing the opportunity to work in community programs that are considered to be the future in medical education.
“Tulane's community empowerment work is at the leading edge of medical schools nationwide that consider their role in improving the health of their communities through engagement, research, clinical and educational programs to be a core responsibility,” said Dr. Karen DeSalvo, Tulane vice dean for community affairs and health policy.
Tulane also supports nine community health sites that deliver high-quality, neighborhood-based primary care and mental health services to the uninsured and underinsured in the New Orleans area.
