SMU and UC Davis Students Team to Help Patients in Sacramento

When Thanh Hua, a podiatry student in the Doctor of Podiatric Medicine (DPM) program at California School of Podiatric Medicine (CSPM), a school within Samuel Merritt University (SMU), set out to create a new healthcare option for the uninsured, she turned to her undergraduate school, UC Davis.  In a conversation with friends, Hua learned that UC Davis School of Medicine has a free community health clinic in the city of Sacramento, Clínica Tepati.  

Clínica Tepati is a student-run clinic, located off of 18th and J Street, staffed by medical and student volunteers of UC Davis School of Medicine. But none of the student volunteers specialized in podiatric medicine. This inspired Hua with the idea to create the "Podiatry Clinic" staffed by DPM students from SMU with the mission to provide free podiatric care and diabetic foot care education to the uninsured and underinsured community living in the Greater Sacramento Area.