[OREGON CITY, OR] December 7, 2015: Clackamas Volunteers in Medicine (CVIM), the first free medical clinic for low-income residents of Clackamas County, has received a community grant from the William Swindells Sr. Memorial Fund of the Oregon Community Foundation. This $15,000 award will help to fund CVIM’s Technology Upgrade and Volunteer Coordination needs. The grant agreement provides for funding: to upgrade technology systems used by staff and volunteer medical care providers to track patient visits and referrals to partnering medical organizations.
Technology improvements will include the purchase of new laptops, software upgrades, electrical service for workstations used by volunteer physicians and nurses, and IT support of systems. These essential upgrades will ensure the sustainability of CVIM as a nationally-recognized Volunteers in Medicine free clinic, one of only three in Oregon.
Because CVIM must have the appropriate technology and equipment to comply with the necessities of quality medical care, these upgrades will directly benefit the work done by CVIM’s all-volunteer run clinic. The clinic’s 200+ volunteer physicians, nurses, scribes and pre-med students use computer-based charting systems for patient records, data collection and patient outcome management. This funding will also provide a streamlined process for recording patient data, making patient appointments, and
supporting CVIM’s Volunteer Coordinator with training and management of the new computer and software systems.
CVIM is proud to announce this generous grant from the William Swindells Sr. Memorial Fund of the Oregon Community Foundation. CVIM has also received support of this project from the Cabana Fund of the Oregon Community Foundation and in-kind donors. For more information on ways to support CVIM, please contact Development Director, Kristin Krahmer, at [email protected].
About Clackamas Volunteers in Medicine: Clackamas Volunteers in Medicine (CVIM) /Founder’s Clinic provides free medical services to uninsured and underinsured low-income residents of Clackamas County, including primary care, specialty exams, lab work, screenings, prescription assistance, health education, chronic illness care and management and referrals to our partnering medical centers. With the change in national healthcare programs, the CVIM Clinic is serving more patients in life and job transition, new to the area, recently unemployed, caregivers of an ill or aging relative, temporarily without housing or work, or in a gap situation not allowing them to afford healthcare resources that meet their needs. Due to these circumstances, the CVIM Clinic has evolved into a unique community health center focusing on the overall wellness of each patient, with services providing extended care for chronic illnesses and a passionate commitment to help bridge the gap between patients and specialty care providers.
As a member of the nationally-based Volunteers in Medicine network, CVIM opened in 2012, dedicated to a “culture of caring,” providing critical medical services to our neighbors, coworkers, friends and family in Clackamas County who need an opportunity to get healthier, and ultimately make our community more economically stable. These services are made possible by our network of skill-based volunteers dedicating their time to treat the whole patient, impacting not only the patient but the lives of our volunteers.
Our service area includes the roughly 10,000 Clackamas County residents who are uninsured or underinsured, primarily ages 18 – 65, 47% male, 53% female and more than 50% undocumented or Hispanic. They reside in rural and city locations throughout Clackamas County. The CVIM Clinic currently holds twice weekly medical clinics and is open 10:00am – 4:00pm Monday – Thursday for appointments. For more information on how to support CVIM or become a volunteer, please visit www.clackamasvim.org or call 503-722-4400.
