Each year, Archstone Foundation proudly partners with the American Public Health Association’s Aging and Public Health Section to honor a program that improves the lives of older adults through innovation, compassion, and community-rooted care. Applications for the award, which spotlights the trailblazing work addressing older adults’ complex health and social needs, are due June 13, 2025.
The Archstone Foundation Award for Excellence in Program Innovation recognizes programs that demonstrate creativity in project design and have a documented record of improving the lives of diverse groups of older adults. Showcasing collaboration and partnerships, these programs also have the potential to be replicated in other communities.
And we are proud to tell you about our 2024 honoree, the Diabetes Care Clinics at the University of the Pacific’s Thomas J. Long School of Pharmacy. The program has done all these things – and demonstrates the profound impact of meeting people where they are, literally and figuratively.
Diabetes Care Clinics Make a Big Impact
In San Joaquin County, where diabetes and prediabetes rates soar above the national average of 38 percent, Professor Rajul Patel, PharmD, PhD, and a dedicated team of faculty, staff, students, and community partners saw a need and stepped in to meet it in 2022. Since their launch, the clinics have offered free health screenings, vaccinations, medication management, education, and tools such as glucometers, test strips, and blood pressure monitors to help older adults prevent or manage diabetes and related complications. The 24 clinics held so far have served more than 1,000 older Californians, most from historically underserved communities and with language and financial barriers to receiving care.
“What inspired us is our area’s disproportionately high rate of prediabetes, diabetes, and hypertension,” Dr. Patel shared. “We have held community health fairs for some time, and as we looked at the data, it was clear that our older adult population needed support. We wanted to build something responsive, respectful, and community-centered.”
The model is about more than providing good clinical care. The clinics are held in locations community members know and trust – such as churches, housing complexes, shelters, and community centers. Services are offered in multiple languages, with assistance from student pharmacists and multilingual volunteers. And team members understand that trust isn’t built overnight. They collaborate with local leaders, host consistent follow-up events, and maintain open lines of communication with attendees. This reliable presence is especially crucial for individuals who are uninsured or underinsured, for whom diabetes management can feel financially out of reach.
When one clinic attendee with diabetes explained that treatment was not affordable, Dr. Patel recalled the team stepped in by providing an on-site screening, helping with applications for pharmaceutical assistance programs, identifying cost-saving coupons, and comparing prices for affordable generic medications. Team members also connected the individual to a local safety-net clinic that offered care with a sliding payment scale. “Because they didn’t quite qualify for Medicaid, we were able to find a workaround so they could get their medications for literally dollars,” he said. “They faced one major barrier – cost – and we were able to help address it.”
Winning the Foundation’s Innovation Award has given the Diabetes Care Clinics national recognition and sparked meaningful conversations and new partnerships. “As a result of the award, we had the opportunity to engage with peers from across the country, which helped validate and amplify our work,” Dr. Patel said. “Locally, it provided credibility and external validation that we are making a difference.”
Call for 2025 Entries
We know other programs are quietly and powerfully transforming care for older adults nationwide, and we encourage all of them to apply for the Innovation Award during the coming month. The winner will be celebrated at the APHA Annual Meeting and Exposition Aging & Public Health section awards ceremony on Monday, Nov. 3rd in Washington D.C.
For more information and nomination details, visit the award page. If you’re not already following us, we invite you to connect on LinkedIn and Facebook for award-related updates and other stories about improving care for older adults.
