VCOM 2020 Annual Report

Hispanic CommunityOutreach Programs Learning to Provide Care for Hispanic Communities

T he Hispanic Community Medical promoting health to the Hispanic community through education and increasing access to care. HCMO’s medical outreach initiatives involve health screenings and osteopathic treatment for Hispanic populations. In addition to community outreach activities, HCMO works to promote cultural awareness on campus by organizing fun social and educational events for students. Guest speaker events, organized by HCMO, provide students with insight into diseases that commonly affect the Hispanic population and how to improve interactions with Hispanic patients. HCMO also works to encourage preparation for medical outreach trips to Spanish-speaking countries by raising money for supplies and gifts to support VCOM’s international outreach trips. To increase the capabilities of VCOM’s future physicians, HCMO works to improve the Spanish language skills of the VCOM student population by holding regular Spanish classes on campus. This helps students communicate with patients at both local and international outreach events. Additionally, especially fluent HCMO members may assist with patient interpretation at local wellness events and to provide tutoring to local Spanish-speaking school children. Outreach (HCMO) student organization on VCOM’s campuses is dedicated to

Hispanic Outreach Events:

• Medical Spanish classes provided for faculty, staff and students throughout the year on every campus • Blood pressure screenings provided at local schools, parks and centers • Students acted as interpreters at various health events • Volunteers gathered for local community health and wellness fairs and set up booths when necessary • Collected donations for goodie bags to be given to children at orphanages during international outreach trips • Hispanic Heritage Diversity and Inclusion Week celebrations, including salsa dancing lessons, potluck dinners and healthcare lectures

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