For San Francisco patient Macheryl Franklin, the food pharmacy at UCSF Medical Center at Mount Zion has been nothing short of "a lifesaver."
"It's wonderful to have fresh fruits and vegetables; they are too expensive at the store," said Franklin, as she rests her bag of groceries on the footstool of the wheelchair she's used since a 2004 car crash injured her spine. "It's a special treat when they have blueberries that I can put on my salads; they're good for the brain."
Blueberries were on offer this day in December, along with tomatoes, pears, carrots, lemons, garlic and a whole frozen chicken. As they packed bags for patients, volunteers and program lead Gina Moreno-John, MD, were talkative and upbeat, having learned their program just received a $3 million Hellman Foundation grant to expand to additional UCSF primary care locations in San Francisco over the next five years.
Begun in 2019, the UCSF Department of General Internal Medicine's (DGIM) food pharmacy gives out bags of fresh produce and a protein item twice a month and offers a cooking class and hot meals once a month. It is the brainchild of Moreno-John and other physicians interested in social justice, after hearing about a colleague's research that found high levels of food insecurity among patients.
"Nutritious food is critical for good health, but about 23% of our patients don't have reliable access to sufficient nutrition - what we call being 'food insecure,'" said Moreno-John. "Our patients tell us they regularly run out of food or can't buy produce. Some tell us they have no money left over after they pay bills each month. Others only have $50 to $100 left over."
Patients who run out of food down 49%
Currently, the DGIM clinic provides groceries to about 120 people at each event; other clinics provide food to five to 60 people per event. The new grant will enable Moreno-John, along with Program Manager Jennifer Fung, to expand food programming to six more primary care clinics in the city and enhance programming at the other five locations where it currently exists.
"Our patients tell us the program is not just helpful for their budget, but their brains feel sharper, their health has turned around and their spirits are lifted by being cared for in this way," said Moreno-John. "And our research shows that the number of patients who often worry about running out of food has gone down by 36%, while the number of patients who often run out of food entirely has gone down by 49%."
