Checking back in with Wayne State's Medicos Amigos a year into the group's creation

Last year I introduced you to a dedicated group of Wayne State University (WSU) medical students named Amigos Medicos or Doctor Friends.

WATCH OUR 2023 story: WSU medical students band together to provide healthcare to those most in need

WSU medical students band together to provide healthcare to those most in need

Over the past year, the clinic has doubled its patient volume, and the students are only just beginning.

In the final days of Hispanic Heritage Month, I follow-ed up with these future doctors who are making a difference today for a one year

The past year has been an eventful year for Amigos Medicos at Wayne State. The group provides primary care, check-up and management of chronic disease for residents of SW Detroit.

For a while the group found itself without a home.

"We had patients who had appointments scheduled and all of a sudden we no longer had a building," said Rene Andino-Galva.

Andino-Galva, current co-director of Amigos Medicos, said the group search for a new home and found it when the Detroit Hispanic Development Corporation.

"They're like, 'rent, you don't need to do that,'" she said. "You can run your clinic in our building and use our area there. And we were like, my goodness, this is a Godsend."

So Amigos Medicos moved and the patient's followed. And with DHDC's outreach the number of patients receiving care surged.

"We've seen more patient volume, probably about twice the amount of patients we saw last year," said John Gallagher.

We first met John Gallagher last year when he was Co-Director of Amigos Medicos. He says in the past year the number of medical students taking part has quadrupled and they have another faculty provider donating their time, allowing Amigos Medicos to offer twice as many free clinics.

"So really it's growing in every way I could imagined since last year," John said.

While the size of Amigos Medicos has grown, the mission remains the same – a deep commitment to patient care regardless of language or ability to pay for physicals, blood pressure checks, glucose screenings and other primary care services.

"They can be seen for like long-standing issues that, you know, they otherwise would just basically be having to live with on a daily basis," said Nevil Khurana.

Amigos Medicos has also established a new relationship with Caesar Chavez high school where they provide outreach to families and students, and where they run a medical club for students interested in pursuing careers in healthcare.

"Kind of helping people get involved in health care or get the health care that they need. And then we found that Cesar Chavez has been a perfect way to do that," John said.

But the medical students in Amigos Medicos also benefit from the clinics and relationships they establish by providing those crucial services. Learning how to speak to patients, establish trust and get a solid patient history.

"You learned as much, if not more, getting out there and actually practicing what you learn in the classroom," Nevil said.

"Getting more exposed to encounters within the community around the school, which is our commitment in the first place, is invaluable," said Wael Sakr, Dean of Wayne State University School of Medicine.

And that commitment is also reflected in Wayne State faculty and alum providers who oversee Amigos Medicos and model the way for these doctors in training.

"The way that they treat the patients, the conversations they have, the way that they go about delivering the care to those patients," Rene said. "I watch it and it's an inspiration to me."

In addition to their routine clinic, Amigos Medicos is also holding a flu clinic in partnership with the Bloomfield Hills based Alana's Foundation.

The Foundation is named in honor of Alana Yaksich, who died of the flu at 5 years old 2003.