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Proposal to Consider the Idea of a Free Health Clinic for

Uninsured and Underinsured
Adults in the
Froedtert Hospital Service Area

For consideration of
Froedtert Hospital Foundation Department

By: Chiquita Thomas

Employee of Community Memorial Hospital
September 20, 2014

September 20, 2014

Froedtert Hospital Foundation Department
9200 W. Wisconsin Ave.
Milwaukee, WI 53226-3596

Dear Froedtert Foundation Department:

Im writing to propose the ideal solution for uninsured and underinsured patients. Many
patients come to the emergency room for health issues, when a primary care doctor would
have been sufficient. One possible solution could be to consider opening a free health clinic
that will aid with common and chronic health issues, as well as be an additional resource to the
community needs. A free health clinic is the new innovative way to cut down the number of
emergency room visits. Implementing this innovative approach will be the start to providing
useful resources to our community and providing patients the opportunity to self-advocate.
As a current employee, I have witnessed a number of uninsured and underinsured patients
consistently revolving in and out of the hospital. The main reasons that have been self-reported
by patients consist of patients not having a primary care physician or possessing exceptional
health insurance. By following Froedterts value of PRIDE (see page 4), clinicians will be able to
better assist all patients- regardless of socioeconomic status. This free clinic will be a replica of
the Community Memorial Outreach Clinic which resides in the Menomonee Falls area.
The emergency department overflow has created a financial and medical strain on the
treatment facility. Not only is this overflow raising the cost of supplies that are being used
regularly, but the overflow is raising the debt increased from the patient not having insurance.
This plan will reduce hospital expenses, reduce emergency room visits, help patients find a
primary care physician, and work toward building a healthier community.
I would appreciate your consideration of this proposal. Without proper health care insurance
and resources, our community will continue to struggle with staying healthy.

Thank you,
Chiquita Thomas, Current Froedtert Health Employee

Table of Contents

The Issue .........4-5

Solving the Issue.5

Staffing .6

Funding....6

Positive Outcome..6

Conclusion ....6

References.7

The Issue
Froedtert Hospital is one of the top hospitals in the Milwaukee area. As of June 2013, the
emergency department maintained more than 100,917 patients. By the end of the year, over
201,000 patients had received services. Based on their socioeconomic status (SES), people can
be considered ineligible to receive good health insurance. In 2013, Froedtert lost a total of 88
million dollars to uncompensated services provided to uninsured patients.
There are 13 zip codes that surround Froedtert Hospital, which house the Westside
Community Vulnerable Zip Codes areas with low SES. There is an outline (in black) of the areas
on the map below. Considering this proposal will meet the standard of Froedtert Hospital of
PRIDE (please see below):
Partnership: partnering with patients, families and other organizations; collaborating with coworkers and colleagues
Responsiveness: meeting the needs of the community in prevention, wellness and providing
integrated care for all ages
Integrity: using resources wisely; building trust
Dignity and Respect: creating an inclusive and compassionate environment for all people
Excellence: demonstrating excellence in all we do.

There are other surrounding hospitals, but Froedtert has had the most visits of uninsured and
underinsured patients. One reason for mass flow going toward Froedtert is that there are many
free clinics, but those clinics are not serviced by Froedtert Hospital. Current resources are slimto-none compared to other hospitals that get involved within the community's well-being. We
are in need of a place where individuals can receive quality healthcare that is provided by
Froedtert Hospital. Right now is the time to help people and send them to local primary care
locations.

Solving the Issue

The purpose and importance of solving this issue is to reduce the cost of emergency room
visits. This will be accomplished by decreasing non-urgent and ambulatory sensitive visits. A
majority of these visits are due to low socioeconomic factors. According to the website, the
Foundation Department is dedicated to supporting the programs and services of Froedtert
Hospital. So, considering this proposal, Froedtert will stand out beyond other Milwaukee
hospitals. I suggest working with Froedtert partners, as they will be able to assist the
Foundation Department in using this free clinic as a net to increase the patient population.

Staffing
The Foundation Department will need to explore how to staff the clinic. I had envisioned there
being several areas of service; registration, health station, nurses and practitioners area, and
labs. I would recommend adding a well-informed worker to assist the patients with applying for
reasonable, but reliable, health insurance. In addition, the foundation department will be
responsible for finding a primary care physician that will help them adequately manage their
conditions.

Funding
I am asking that the Foundation Department to explore ways to fund this proposal. It could
become expensive to begin this new initiative, so I suggest working with generous support
programs and services of Froedtert Hospital. Due to this being a free clinic, I will suggest asking
for a small donation from patients to maintain services.

Positive Outcome
The optimal goal is to provide service to uninsured and underinsured patients while offering
resources that will help them with finding affordable healthcare insurance. The clinic could be a
success and invaluable resource to the Froedtert Hospital service area. It is with great hope that
each patient will get a sense of satisfaction and completion with health and other chronic
needs, as well as maintain any follow-up appointment(s) with their primary health physician.
Ideally, each patient should gain a sense of dignity and confidence to say that they finally
became connected to a reliable primary care facility.

Conclusion
By having free health clinics, will help create a safer environment for our patients. Investing in
their health will be a great way to build community strength. To keep track of performance, the
staff will have new patients complete an evaluation of their clinical experience at the end of
their visit. The evaluations would let the facility know if Froedterts Healthcare mission ("to
advance the health of the communities we serve through exceptional care enhanced by
innovation and discovery") was met.
This initiative will keep the emergency department for the use for emergencies, plus help the
community seek other resources for primary care needs.

Thank you for considering this proposal. I would be happy to meet with any member(s) of the
Foundation Department to discuss this further. You can contact me at (773) 416-6609 or by
email Thomascm@alverno.edu. Together we can make a difference in our community, our
patient care, and our finances.

References
Froedtert Hospital Foundation Recognition Program | Froedtert ... (n.d.).
Retrievedfromhttp://www.froedtert.com/giving/foundation/recognition-program

Vision, Mission and Values | Froedtert & the Medical College ... (n.d.). Retrieved from
http://www.froedtert.com/about/mission