The University of Toledo College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences is adding a pharmacist’s touch to the Perrysburg Heights Free Medical Clinic. The clinic, initiated by Dr. Richard Paat in 2010, operates in the Perrysburg Heights Community Center each Wednesday night. Since 2010, the clinic has served over 300 patients, including low-income patients, the elderly, the uninsured and the underinsured.

Regardless of income or ability to pay, patients of all ages receive medical care at the clinic. Patients receive the services they might receive during a typical office visit: vitals, medical history, physical examination, and labs and x-rays if they are needed. Free diagnostic testing and result confirmation, amounting to over $50,000, has been provided by St. Luke’s Hospital. Patients are even able to have minor medical procedures performed, like removal of cysts or sutures. The clinic’s services are provided by a number of medical professionals, from physicians, physician’s assistants, pharmacists and nurses to more specialized practitioners like ophthalmologists and podiatrists. The clinic sees 15-20 patients per week in the two and a half hours it operates. The clinic’s services also include a mobile migrant worker clinic that travels the state to meet and treat migrant populations.

The College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences is playing an important role in the clinic. Dr. Diane Cappelletty, associate professor of clinical pharmacy in the Department of Pharmacy Practice and co-director of the Infectious Disease Research Laboratory, serves on the Board of Directors. Three UT pharmacists – Drs. Diane Cappelletty, Amy Smith and Chad Tuckerman, PharmD ‘00 – as well as local UT pharmacy alumna Dr. Krystal Ricciardella, PharmD ‘08, rotate to cover the clinic’s pharmacy operations. P2 pharmacy students work alongside first- and second-year medical students to treat patients.

In addition to completing Introductory Pharmacy Practice Experience (IPPE) hours at the clinic, pharmacy students have completed service learning projects for the patients. The projects have resulted in a patient information binder that includes information about smoking cessation, diabetes and nutritional support, free listings of pharmacies with reduced prescription costs, and information about patient assistance programs through pharmaceutical companies. P4 students have also completed longitudinal experiences as the Perrysburg Heights Free Medical Clinic, wherein they educate patients about health issues like inhaler use and fill prescriptions.

Medications for patients at the Perrysburg Heights Free Medical Clinic were initially provided through a grant from a nun at St. Anne’s. The clinic’s pharmacy department is now seeking grants from various agencies to purchase more medications and to provide more effective medications, such as longer-acting insulin products for diabetic patients.

Tags: College of Pharmacy, faculty, pharmacy, rotation, september, service, student, toledo, vaccination

Charisse Montgomery is the Scientific Editor and College Communicator for The University of Toledo College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences. She was raised in Bellevue, Nebraska and earned her undergraduate degree in English at Towson University near Baltimore, Maryland. She is an alumna of The University of Toledo with master's degree in English from the College of Arts and Sciences, and she has worked as a secondary educator and a freelance writer and editor. She volunteers her time mentoring students and enjoys learning, reading, painting, and traveling.
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This entry was posted on Tuesday, September 27th, 2011 at 11:06 pm and is filed under News.
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