Street Medicine Celebration

Caring for patients experiencing homelessness in Detroit has been a priority for the Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine’s (MSUCOM) Detroit Street Care team, led by the college’s medical students and Richard Bryce, D.O., assistant professor and director and faculty advisor for the Detroit Street Care program. Dr. Bryce also serves as clinical faculty with Henry Ford Health in Detroit, and as chief medical officer and a family physician at the Community Health and Social Services (CHASS) Center in Southwest Detroit.

Serving those experiencing homelessness and working to ensure they receive health care is not done alone. Dr. Bryce, who serves in roles with MSU and MSUCOM, Henry Ford Health and CHASS, has connected the dots to bring these organizations together to serve people across Detroit and Southeast Michigan. These partnerships also led to the Henry Ford Hospital Street Medicine Fellowship and the street medicine van used by the CHASS Center and the MSUCOM Street Care team to deliver care to some of the most vulnerable residents in Detroit.

MSUCOM provided support to Henry Ford Health to establish a Street Medicine Fellowship – the third in the U.S. – to ensure the care for people experiencing homelessness in southeast Michigan would continue. Hari Iyer, M.D., is the first and current Henry Ford Hospital Street Medicine Fellow.

Fueled by the Detroit Street Care medical students’ passion to serve the people of Detroit and Southeast Michigan, MSUCOM Dean Joyce deJong, D.O., provided the $1 million in dean discretionary funding to support the Street Medicine Fellowship and the purchase and branding of the van now used by both the CHASS and MSUCOM Detroit Street Care teams to reach people where they are, bringing the “hospital exam room” to them.

“The van is an incredible donation that allows our students who are passionate about caring for our patients the ability to do more,” Dr. Bryce told the group gathering Thursday, Oct. 8, in Detroit. “The fellowship is beautiful and another piece of this amazing team.”

Those joining Dr. Bryce that day included:

• Joyce deJong, D.O., dean MSUCOM
• Felix Valbuena, M.D., CEO CHASS Center
• Steven Kalkanis, M.D., CEO Henry Ford Medical Group
• Norm Hubbard, president Henry Ford + MSU
• Kimberly Baker Genaw, M.D., designated institutional official (DIO) for Henry Ford Health
• Niharica Suri Kannan, MSUCOM student and president of Detroit Street Care
• Hari Iyer, M.D., Henry Ford Hospital Street Medicine Fellow

By Terri Hughes-Lazzell and Keith LeRoux