Barriers to Health Insurance Pre- and Post-Affordable Care Act Implementation in Providence, RI.

The impact of healthcare reform under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) on individuals living in cities has not yet been quantified by local Departments of Health. This makes it difficult for safety net sources of healthcare, such as free clinics, to plan for the future. Therefore, members of Clinica Esperanza/Hope Clinic conducted a survey in predominantly Latino communities of South and West Providence, RI, using a convenience sample method (N = 206).

Vida Sana: a lifestyle intervention for uninsured, predominantly Spanish-speaking immigrants improves metabolic syndrome indicators.

Metabolic syndrome is an increasingly common condition that can contribute to the development of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. 35 % of adults living in the United States meet the criteria for having metabolic syndrome, with that number being even higher in populations with health disparities. We describe a 'healthy lifestyles' program implemented at a free clinic serving a predominantly Hispanic cohort of low-income, uninsured individuals living in Providence, Rhode Island.

Assessment of hypertension guidelines adherence at a free clinic serving a predominantly Latino population in Providence, RI.

Hypertension affects more than 50 million people in the United States. A recent national health study (NHANES) found that the proportion of certain Hispanic ethnic groups with stage 1 and stage 2 hypertension was greater than for whites. In order to identify areas of improvement, as well as to examine trends in patient outcomes, Clínica Esperanza/Hope Clinic (CEHC), a free clinic for the uninsured, recently conducted a study to evaluate how well the clinic's hypertensive patients are treated, according to current guidelines for hypertension, as compared to other clinics in the U.

A nurse-run walk-in clinic: cost-effective alternative to non-urgent emergency department use by the uninsured.

Non-urgent healthcare problems are responsible for more than 9 million visits to the emergency department (ED) in US hospitals each year, largely due to patients' lack of access to a primary care physician. To avoid costly and unnecessary ED usage for non-urgent health problems, a walk-in clinic run by nurses (CHEER Clinic) was developed as an extension of the services provided by an existing free clinic in a low-income neighborhood of Providence, RI, with the goal of providing uninsured patients with a convenient, no-cost means of accessing healthcare. An evaluation and cost-effectiveness analysis of the clinic's first 5 months of operation were performed.