Rutgers Health remains dedicated to meaningful and sustainable clinical and community service to improve health and address major societal issues. Whether in Newark, New Brunswick, or elsewhere in New Jersey, community engagement is a cornerstone of our mission.
Rutgers Health community health programs reach out to the residents of New Jersey, particularly people living in traditionally underserved areas, to provide access to high-quality health care, regardless of cultural or ethnic background, or ability to pay.
The Eric B. Chandler Health Center offers comprehensive, family-oriented community health services to people in New Brunswick. Part of the center's objective is to provide high quality outpatient health care that is culturally effective, accessible, and affordable, as well as high quality educational opportunities for health professionals who train there.
The Community Participatory Physical Therapy Clinic serves people in Newark with physical therapy services along with wellness and health education. The clinic is supervised by a licensed physical therapist and student volunteers from the entry level doctoral program in physical therapy at the Rutgers School of Health Professions.
The Health Outreach Practice Experience (H.O.P.E.) Clinic in Plainfield, New Jersey, provides free primary care and management of acute and chronic diseases such as diabetes and hypertension for uninsured adults. The clinic, led by the Rutgers School of Health Professions’ Physician Assistant Program, provides opportunities for student learning and engagement with the local community.
The Promise Clinic, an extension of the HIPHOP project, is a volunteer-based, student-run clinic in the Eric B Chandler Health Center in New Brunswick. The clinic provides free primary care services to the uninsured clients of Elijah’s Promise Soup Kitchen and assists with health maintenance, screenings, medications, and laboratory work.
Run by medical student volunteers from New Jersey Medical School, the Student Family Health Care Center serves the needs of medically underserved populations by providing free, quality health care to Newark community members. Services include physical examinations, chronic disease management, gynecological care, and psychosocial counseling. All services are provided under the supervision of board-certified family physicians.
The François-Xavier Bagnoud Center within the Rutgers School of Nursing is a leader and innovator in programs for vulnerable women, children, youth, and families, including those infected/affected by HIV. The center serves Newark and surrounding areas, and its staff provides health care, medical case management services, community outreach, and education for clients and their families.
The Homeless and Indigent Population Health Outreach Project (HIPHOP) Community Health Initiative links Robert Wood Johnson Medical School students who seek to meet health-specific learning objectives, with services that address health and social needs. The program provides community outreach, health promotion, preventive education, and clinical services to underserved populations in New Brunswick and Middlesex County.
The Rutgers School of Dental Medicine provides oral health services while training the next generation of dentists. Care is provided by dental students working under the direction of faculty members who are fully licensed dentists. The clinics in Newark offer free screenings, preventive treatment, and oral health education to local children.
Rutgers Health Service Corps (RHSC) aims to bring together a cadre of students, faculty, staff, and community members working to improve population and public health across Rutgers’ communities through education, innovation, and service. It is the post-pandemic evolution of the Rutgers VAX Corps, which provided COVID-19 vaccinations to university and community members. Building on that success, RHSC aims to provide members with unique training and service opportunities that promote health, wellness, and equity.
The Center for Healthy Families and Cultural Diversity focuses on leadership, advocacy, and excellence in promoting culturally responsive, quality health care for diverse populations. The center meets its objectives by offering education and training, technical assistance and consultation, as well as research and evaluation.
The National HIV/AIDS Strategy, an initiative of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, has a goal to reduce HIV infection, increase access and improve care, and reduce HIV-related health disparities. The center operates an HIV/AIDS prevention program that centralizes online access to training, technical assistance, information exchange, and is a resource library for evidence-based programs and practices on youth HIV prevention.
Our schools, centers, and institutes have a long history of engagement with communities across New Jersey. The reports below capture the breadth of these programs and activities and the impacts on those we serve.
Schools and units across RBHS provide a variety of health screening services and nutrition education programs at health fairs, area farmer’s markets, and other events, often with referral services to Rutgers-community clinics and providers.
Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey at University Hospital hosts cancer screenings and patient educational workshops on various topics, and participates in community health fairs and events.
RBHS schools and units are focused on building and strengthening collaborative relationships between investigators, community members, and partner organizations around community-focused and community-based research.
Research With A Heart at New Jersey Medical School provides culturally competent research on treatment and prevention through community engagement, collaboration, and education.
Rutgers University Behavioral Health Care’s Call Center provides crucial support 24 hours per day, 7 days per week to people struggling with personal issues.
Among the initiatives we support are:
