Community Medical Clinic of Aiken County

If selected as a winner, I would use the Elevate Prize funding and support to advance the services that the clinic provides to our community and expand the areas that we serve. We currently provide free healthcare and medications to the uninsured and low income residents of Aiken County. These funds would allow us to expand to Edgefield County as well. The funds would also allow us to expand our Real Independence Self-Empowerment (R.I.S.E.) Program. Our R.I.S.E. Program is a holistic approach to address our patients' healthcare needs along with their personal needs, including personal development and higher education. Our services aim to break the poverty cycle and treat the whole person. We individualize our healthcare plans and R.I.S.E. Program plans to each patient. Everyone is different and come from various backgrounds. We do not believe in the "one size" fits all approach. Our clinic is more than a band aid for our patients and look to get to the root of the problem that is causing our patients to be in the situation they are in. We believe that all need hope and a hand up and provide a welcoming environment for our patients to thrive and grow.

We are formally known as the Free Medical Clinic of Aiken County but do business as the Community Medical Clinic of Aiken County. We were chosen as one of ten recipients of the SC Secretary of State Mark Hammond Angel Award, which is awarded to the most fiscally responsible charities in our state. Our clinic's vison and purpose is to remove barriers for our patients, whether it is access to healthcare or the ability to get a job or obtain higher education. We are humbled to be part of someone's story and for them to trust us to be part of their journey. Our goals for the future is to be able to reach more people in our community that need our services. We want to expand our services by adding additional staff to include translators and peer specialists. We want to be able to meet our patients where they are and help them get to where they need to be.

The specific problem we are solving is barriers to accessing affordable healthcare and poverty cycle. According to the data presented in census.gov for Aiken and Edgefield Counties, 13.4% of Aiken County residents are uninsured and 13.6% of Edgefield County residents are uninsured. Most of the uninsured population includes low income families with at least one worker in the family and many are living in poverty. As stated by the 2018 U.S. Census, 16.1% of Aiken County residents are living in poverty and 15.5% of Edgefield County residents are living in poverty. As of last year, our clinic served 588 unduplicated patients and provided over 3,200 office visit and dispensed 35,000 prescriptions at no cost to our patients. We are 100% free for our patients and provide healthcare, medications, lifestyle classes, health literacy education for the uninsured and low income residents of Aiken County that have a qualifying diagnosed chronic health condition. 

What makes our clinic and work innovated and unique is that we combine a holistic and medical system based approach to treat the whole person at our clinic. We take the time to get to know our patients and individualize their healthcare and personal development plans to with their needs and background in mind. We think our patients are worth the investment it takes to tailor these plans to each individual and find that this approach engages them and gets them to be active participants in their journey to getting their health and lives back on track. 

My organization is having an impact on humanity and helping those that we serve by providing the steps needed for each individual to get their heath back on track, assessing each patient to find out what their needs are and what their home life is like and removing barriers that would prevent them from reaching their goals and what they determine is success to them. These steps are effective because it allows us to build rapport and establish a relationship with our patients that builds trust and respect. All of these steps help engage our patients and allow them to be active participants in their path to better health.