The Chicagoland Free Clinics Consortium: A Model for Student-Run Free Clinic Collaboration.

Abstract

While student-run free clinics (SRFCs) play an important role in care for underserved populations, few mechanisms exist to promote collaboration among regional SRFCs. To address this gap, the Chicagoland Free Clinics Consortium (CFCC) was formed to (1) facilitate collaboration between Chicagoland SRFCs, (2) provide innovation grant funding, and (3) host an annual conference. In 2018, students from the Pritzker School of Medicine founded the CFCC and partnered with peers from area schools to implement programming. Between 2018 and 2022, CFCC engaged 23 SRFCs representing all 6 Chicagoland schools, held 4 annual conferences, and distributed $15,423 in grants to 19 projects at 14 SRFC sites. A total of 176 students from 5 schools attended the 4 conferences. In 2022, 82 unique participants were surveyed, and 66% (54/82) responded. Eighty percent (43/54) reported they were "more likely to collaborate with other Chicagoland free clinics." In 2022, all grant sites were surveyed and 84% (16/19) responded. Most (87%,14/16) agreed the grant "allowed them to implement a project that would not have otherwise been accomplished" and 21% (4/19) were inter-institutional collaborations. To our knowledge, CFCC is the first student-led organization to promote sustained collaboration across SRFCs in a metropolitan area.