Edisto Free Clinic wins award

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The Edisto Natchez-Kusso Free Clinic in Ridgeville recently received a gold rating from the National Association of Free and Charitable Clinics (NAFC), a recently launched a Quality Standards Program. The clinic is spearheaded by Dr. John Creel, chief of the Edisto Natchez-Kusso tribe.

Almost 600 NAFC members have earned ratings in this inaugural year of launching the standards program. Of that, 68% received a gold rating, 17% received a silver rating and 15% received a bronze rating.

The mission of the National Association of Free and Charitable Clinics is to ensure the medically underserved have access to affordable health care. To quantify and qualify the care provided at the Free and Charitable Clinic network, the NAFC formalized a set of quality standards for member organizations.

“Each year, approximately two million patients receive care at 1,400 free and charitable clinics and pharmacies throughout the United States,” said Nicole Lamoureux, NAFC president and CEO. “The participation from our members in this program demonstrates their commitment to providing quality care to people in their communities that are medically underserved.”

NAFC quality standards elements include policies and procedures related to the following areas: administrative, enhanced access and continuity of care, identifying and managing patient population information, planning and managing care, providing self-care support and community resources, tracking and coordinating care, and measuring and improving performance.