Carolina Alumni Review - March/April 2008

FOR THE PEOPLE
A Taste of What It’s Like to Be a Doctor

UNC’s med students have time for detailed diagnoses of Bloomer Hill residents who otherwise would have little to turn to besides the emergency room. Below, third-year Jeanne Rittschof interviews patient Bobby McCain; at right, second-year Joshua Berkowitz and Shelley Warren.

DAN SEARS ’ 74

To many on the outside, UNC’s School of Medicine is an illustrious institution for those with the resources and skill to commit their lives to patient care. But for some within its walls, the aspiration to become a doctor starts in one of the state’s most financially strained communities.

“Bloomer Hill is the epitome of poor,” said second-year student Miles Harmon.

On the first Saturday of every month, UNC med students drive to Bloomer Hill, a community in Rocky Mount, to evaluate patients in a clinic set up in a church-turned-community center. Prescriptions are written, depression screenings run, and everything from vertigo to chronic asthma diagnosed. They’ve been doing it for 20 years.

“In med school, there aren’t a lot of
opportunities for continuing care,” said Dr.
Michael Pignone, an associate professor in
the medical school and a faculty coordina-

tor of the clinic. “The students are always seeing new patients. This experience gives them a taste of what it’s like to be a primary care doctor.”

The group usually consists of one UNC doctor and eight medical school students. First-years assist with the reading and documentation of the patients’ vitals, and the more experienced carry out individual exams. Three of the eight students operate the pharmacy and help patients file prescription paperwork. The clinic is financially supported by the state’s Area Health

Education Centers. UNC Hospitals labs donate supplies.

“I like asking the students how long they’ve been studying,” said Delois Hunter, a resident of nearby Nashville who, lacking health insurance, has been coming to the