| Date: June 17, 2011 | Media Contact: | Chuck Moran |
| | | Pennsylvania Medical Society |
| For Immediate Release | | (717) 558-7820 |
(Harrisburg, PA) Nominated by the Lancaster City and County Medical Society, Project Access Lancaster County (PALCO) was recently named the 2011 recipient of the Community Organization Diversity Award from the Pennsylvania Medical Society.
The award recognizes the accomplishments of an organization that encourages ethnic and gender diversity in the medical profession, or is actively engaged in attracting and retaining physicians from diverse backgrounds to Pennsylvania, or promotes excellence in medical care in ethnic communities.
According to the nomination forms, PALCO serves a diverse patient population of uninsured, demonstrating the willingness of all physicians to provide assistance to those less fortunate. By providing free care by family medicine physicians and a variety of specialists to underserved populations, those in need receive necessary medical care. All participants are assigned a medical home and are encouraged to visit at least once each year.
To date, 900 medical providers, including 620 Lancaster County physicians, participate with PALCO. More than one-third of the patients are of Hispanic decent, while nearly 10 percent are African American. Two culturally competent Spanish speaking staff enroll and explain the program to Spanish speaking participants. They also translate during medical appointments.
PALCO will be formally honored with the award on October 15, 2011, at the annual meeting of the Pennsylvania Medical Society to be held in Hershey.
The Pennsylvania Medical Society was founded in 1848, and today, the physician members continue to focus on better health for all Pennsylvanians. To learn more about the Pennsylvania Medical Society, visit its website at www.pamedsoc.org or its patient website at www.myfamilywellness.org.
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