Paul Thomas MD in the USA Today
Back in 2013, Dr. Paul Thomas helped start an organization called Street Medicine Detroit.
Street Medicine Detroit is a student-run organization that delivers primary care medical services to homeless and uninsured people on the streets of Detroit, in parks and in church basements, warming centers and homeless shelters. Street Medicine Detroit is a lifeline for folks who are living on the streets.
Medical Students from Wayne State University School of Medicine run the Street Medicine Detroit program and deliver medical care and compassion to people who are homeless, unsheltered, or without permanent housing.
When I was a fourth year medical student at Wayne State University School of Medicine in 2013, I helped a second year medical student named Johnny Wong start the organization. We went on "street runs" to deliver medical care to homeless people.
During one of those runs, a journalist named John Wisely followed our work and wrote about it in the USA Today.
I've been reflecting about the meaning of our work at Plum Health DPC and it has deep roots in the advocacy and volunteering that I engaged in before, during, and after medical school.
I turned the newspaper article from the USA Today into a plaque that I hang in my office as a reminder to keep meeting people where they are at, to keep delivering compassionate care, and to keep striving to make health care affordable and accessible for everyone.
Thanks for reading and have a wonderful day.
- Paul Thomas, MD with Plum Health DPC