Quality and Implementation of Diabetic Care at a Free Clinic

Although typically receiving little government funding, free clinics help ensure access to affordable quality health care to the medically underserved. Established in 2004, the authors' metropolitan Detroit Health Unit on Davison Avenue (HUDA) Clinic delivers primary care and specialized services to uninsured populations. The authors compared proportionate changes in A1c levels compared to prior national averages to evaluate the significance of care a free diabetes clinic can provide to uninsured populations.

Retrospective data from 2017-2019 were reviewed of adult patients who have been diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes. From HUDA Clinic medical records, data were collected concerning patient demographics, insurance status, pregnancy, major comorbidities and several factors related to diabetes standards of care.

There were a total of 2,231 patient visits to HUDA Clinic in 2019, of which 125 patients (5.6%) received care for their Type 2 diabetes. Forty (32%) clinic patients who had a visit in 2019 had an HbA1c <7.0 and 29 (23%) had an HbA1c > 9.5. This is comparable to the 2020 National Diabetes Statistics Report in which approximately 50% (n = 15.6 million) of Americans had an HbA1c < 7.0 and 14% (n = 5.1 million) had an HbA1c > 9.5.

Huda Clinic's diabetes care percentages were quite comparable to state and national data and CDC parameters, although these comparative results need to be considered in terms of the authors' smaller sample size. These overall results indicate that health care providers can meet major recommended diabetic care at inner-city free clinics in metropolitan communities. Future provider and patient study studies regarding free clinic care patterns are clearly required to identify gaps in healthcare access and formulate and test specific strategies to improve diabetes-related outcomes.