Medical- Legal Partnerships:  Addressing the Unmet Legal Needs of Health Center Patients

Peter Shin, Ph.D, MPH,

Associate Professor, Director, Geiger Gibson Program (GGP) in Community Health Policy, Research Director, Geiger/Gibson RCHN CHF Research Collaborative, Department of Health Policy, School of Public Health and Health Services, George Washington University

Ellen Lawton, JD,

Executive Director, National Center for Medical-Legal Partnership

Marsha Griffin, MD

Co-founder, Community for Children, Pediatric Medicine Physician, Brownsville Community Health Center

Dr. Peter Shin, lead author of a recent Geiger Gibson/ RCHN Community Health Foundation Research Collaborative report, and Ellen Lawton, Esq., Executive Director of the National Center for Medical-Legal Partnership and leader in the MLP field, will examine the role of medical-legal partnerships (MLPs) as catalysts for improving the overall health of low-income and vulnerable patients by addressing their legal needs. Joining them will be Dr. Marsha Griffin, Co-Founder of Community for Children and a pediatrician at the Brownsville Community Health Center, a multi-site migrant and community health center in Brownsville, Texas. Community health centers’ comprehensive approach to health care and high proportion of low-income patients make them  an excellent entry point for access to essential legal services, and health center MLPs can also benefit the viability of the centers.