Washington, D.C., June 3, 2002 - Nine U.S. medical schools have been awarded grants for the development of student-initiated community programs and services, courtesy of the Association of American Medical Colleges, Pfizer, Inc., and the Pfizer Medical Humanities Initiative.

The "Caring for Community" grant program provides funding for community health projects initiated, developed, and run by medical students. The goal of the program is to encourage medical students to identify unique or unexplored avenues of community service.

The 2002 grantees are: University of Iowa Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine, Weill Medical College of Cornell University, Duke University School of Medicine, Loma Linda University School of Medicine, Tufts University School of Medicine, University of Utah School of Medicine, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, and Washington University School of Medicine.

"Caring for Community" provides three types of grants - new, supplemental, and non-continuous. New projects are funded at $12,000 the first year, decreasing to $3,000 in the fourth and final year of the grant. Supplemental grants support new projects within existing programs and are funded at $8,000 the first year, decreasing to $2,000 in the fourth year. Non-continuous grants are provided for short-term projects and can be funded up to $15,000.

Grantees and Program Descriptions:

University of Iowa Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine - "Mobile Clinic"
Medical students provide regularly scheduled on-site health care to underserved areas in Iowa City and the surrounding community, through the use of a mobile trailer of medical supplies and health education materials.

Weill Medical College of Cornell University - "Camp Phoenix"
Camp Phoenix, a pediatric burn survivor camp run by medical students, provides a safe and nurturing environment for children who are burn survivors, with the goals of helping to improve their self-esteem and providing normalcy to their life.

Duke University School of Medicine - "Healthy Transitions"
Medical students at Duke, along with public health students at University of North Carolina and the North Carolina Corrections Institute for Women, empower incarcerated women to make informed decisions about their bodies and encourage them to use the rehabilitation resources offered in prison.

Loma Linda University School of Medicine - "Healthy Neighborhoods Project"
The Healthy Neighborhoods Project promotes health awareness through a variety of events, including a health fair, a 5K and 10K run, and "Community Kids Connection" - a mentoring program for at-risk children in the San Bernardino area.

Tufts University School of Medicine - "The Sharewood Project"
The Sharewood Project provides a range of services from basic and urgent medical care to HIV, hepatitis B, and nutritional counseling for the underserved population in the Boston area, as well as a referral system for local cities surrounding Boston.

University of Utah School of Medicine - "Utah Rural Outreach Program"
The Utah Rural Outreach Program is designed to address the issue of disproportionately low numbers of health care providers in rural and frontier Utah. Medical students visit high schools in these rural areas to increase awareness of and interest in professional careers and education.

Vanderbilt University School of Medicine - "Project OASIS"
Project OASIS: Caring for Teens in Crisis, is a collaborative project of medical students from both Vanderbilt and Meharry Medical College, designed to provide homeless teens in Nashville with medical information and support about sexually transmitted and other diseases.

Wake Forest University School of Medicine - "Share the Health"
Share the Health is an annual health fair sponsored by medical students at Wake Forest. It is designed to encourage the medically underserved to become active participants in their own health care, and to empower them to do so by teaching them about community health resources and strategies for disease prevention.

Washington University School of Medicine - "Childhood Lead Poison Testing"
Student groups at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis hold numerous health fairs throughout the year in which health screenings are available. The health fairs will begin to offer testing for lead poisoning in low-income, high-risk populations.

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The Association of American Medical Colleges represents the 125 accredited U.S. medical schools; the 16 accredited Canadian medical schools; some 400 major teaching hospitals, including Veterans Administration medical centers; more than 105,000 faculty in 98 academic and scientific societies; and the nation's 66,000 medical students and 97,000 residents. Additional information about the AAMC and U.S. medical schools and teaching hospitals is available at www.aamc.org/newsroom.

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The Association of American Medical Colleges is a not-for-profit association representing all 129 accredited U.S. and 17 accredited Canadian medical schools; nearly 400 major teaching hospitals and health systems, including 68 Department of Veterans Affairs medical centers; and 94 academic and scientific societies. Through these institutions and organizations, the AAMC represents 109,000 faculty members, 67,000 medical students, and 104,000 resident physicians. Additional information about the AAMC and U.S. medical schools and teaching hospitals is available at www.aamc.org/newsroom.

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