Disseminating the Department of Community Service (DOCS) model, University of Miami

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Project Summary

The Department of Community Service (DOCS) is a student run, non-profit organization endorsed by the University of Miami’s Miller School of Medicine’s (UMMSM) administration. Through DOCS, UMMSM students and physicians provide quality healthcare to the underserved populations in South Florida. In 2014, DOCS partnered with UM’s School of Communication, and with generous support from the Mitchell Wolfson, Sr. Foundation, to develop an online decision support tool to connect like-minded students, faculty and deans at medical schools nationwide with the program. The website’s goal is to engage interested schools in coordinating, improving, and expanding existing community service projects or establishing new health fairs or student-directed clinics.

I served as the creative director and project manager for this web project, coordinating with a diverse set of stakeholders and contributors including faculty, staff, and students at both the Miller School of Medicine and the School of Communication. The site is currently available at: docs.com.miami.edu


Awards

  • 2015 Horizon Awards, Gold for Responsive/Mobile site
  • 2015 Horizon Awards, Silver for University/School site
  • 2016 Communicator Awards, Award of Distinction for Websites – Charitable Organizations / Non-Profit
  • 2016 W3 Award from the Academy of Interactive & Visual Arts, Silver for Charitable Organizations / Non-Profit

Project Significance
Community service is a core value that medical students should foster. UMMSM’s DOCS program has over 40 years of experience providing necessary care and resources to underserved populations while furthering medical student training, and fostering relationships between the medical school and community stakeholders. The Wolfson Foundation recognizes the significant contributions the DOCS program gives to local communities in southern Florida and supports the dissemination of this community service program to other medical school’s nationwide.

The site will launch in early 2016 and will be shared with medical deans at select institutions as part of a pilot program and will be promoted to medical institutions across the United States. The site allows interested parties to connect with the UMMSM DOCS team to determine the best course of action to start or expand upon medical community service programs in their area, with the goal of improving community service endeavors nationally.