Dr. Mark Holzberg
United States

Mercy Care Clinic, through 11 clinic locations in the Atlanta area, delivers primary care, dental and vision, pediatrics, health education, and HIV treatment. It accepts all insurance plans, including Medicare and Medicaid, and the fees are based on the patient’s income if uninsured. In 2009, Mercy Care formed an association with the Gateway Center for the Homeless to provide primary care and dentistry for the homeless population in the metropolitan Atlanta area.

The program set up by Dr. Holzberg adds full-service dermatology to the clinic with the help of members of the Georgia Society of Dermatology and Dermatologic Surgery, thereby providing this population with access to dermatologic care.

The free clinic is offered twice a month and each homeless patient consultation involves a dermatologist, a certified medical assistant and a medical scribe to keep records.

The project was set up in April 2018 and since July, eight dermatologists are involved and approximately 60 homeless patients have benefited from the project.

The grant will be used to extend the program, increasing the number of free services, developing a Street Medicine program for Dermatology care, and providing equipment and medicine for the program.