Community Service

The Community Service Page is intended to connect ICHP members who are organizing community service projects in their area with other members who are willing to participate. AIDS Walks, the Cancer Society Relay for Life, staffing free clinic, Special Olympics and much more are examples of projects that ICHP members frequently participate in and others would love to join if they knew there was a team already in place.

If you have a project in the planning stage and would like to list it on our site, forward the information to the ICHP office to Melissa Dyrdahl. Information should include: Name of the event, Event sponsor, Date, Time, Location, Physical requirements to participate in the event. Contact person's information (for anyone interested in participating in your event).

Upcoming Opportunities

Let us know what you are doing and we will share it here! Contact ICHP at 815-227-9292 or email MelissaD@ichpnet.org. 
 

Year-round Volunteer Opportunities

  • Little by Little

The Illinois Council of Health-System Pharmacists now has a new informal partner to make a small portion of the world a better place! Little by Little is a non-profit organization that faithfully partners with those in need of improved health and well-being. Little by Little has been organizing medical professionals and graduate level health professional students in service learning teams since 2006. Their teams provide primary health care at a rural clinic in Gramothe, a mountainous village approximately 15 miles from Port-Au-Prince, the capital city of Haiti. Over the course of one week their team examines and treats over 200 patients per day. Physicians, advanced practice nurses, pharmacists, registered nurses, pharmacy technicians, lab technicians and those dedicated to their pharmacy and supply inventory compile a typical team of 25-30 volunteers. By partnering with Mountain Top Ministries (MTM), a Haitian run organization that maintains the clinic and hires local clinic support staff and translators, we are able to capacity build with their resources and collaborate with other volunteer medical teams who also visit MTM throughout the year.
 
Little by Little is now accepting applications for 2019 trips to Haiti. The 2019 dates are:
January 7 -  14
March 25 - April 1
August 5 - 12
October 17 - 23
Apply online no later than July 20, 2018. For more information or if you have questions, contact Jan Beaman.
  • First, you must pay a $99 deposit as part of the application. This fee pays for your trip insurance and is non-refundable.
    • This is done separately from the application form through PayPal on Little by Little's donate page.
    • When making your $99 PayPal deposit, indicate the name of the person applying for the trip in the "Notes" field of your PayPal form.
    • Also, write the purpose of the payment (ex: "2019 Mission Trip").
  • Application Form will be closed after July 20, 2018. If you have extenuating circumstances preventing you from applying before this date, contact Little by Little as soon as possible. 
Sustainability and reciprocity are the corner stones of Little by Little’s mission and vision. By faithfully partnering with those in need of improved health and well-being, together their medical volunteers can make a big difference, little by little. You can now find Little by Little here: http://www.littlebylittlehaiti.org/.

  • Doctors Without Borders
Doctors Without Borders/MÉdecins Sans FrontiÈres (MSF) is an independent, international humanitarian organization that delivers emergency aid to people affected by armed conflict,  epidemics, natural and man-made disasters, or exclusion from health care in more than 60 countries. We have more than 27,000 doctors, nurses, administrators, and other professionals in the field, but are constantly recruiting both medical and non-medical personnel to provide expertise and fulfill the ever-increasing need for emergency health care in the developing world.

We are always looking for medical professionals from a variety of disciplines, including physicians, surgeons, anesthesiologists, pharmacists, nurses, obstetricians and gynecologists, nurse-midwives and midwives, and specialists in infectious diseases, HIV/AIDS, and TB, to complete our missions. Additionally, experience in construction, pump and generator maintenance, electricity, vehicle mechanics, bookkeeping/planning, water and sanitation systems, supply management, equipment electricity, financial controlling, logistics, and team leadership are just a few of the talents that we seek in aid workers.

For more information please visit: www.doctorswithoutborders.org

  • MedAccess Chicago

MedAccess Chicago is a closed, central-fill pharmacy located within CommunityHealth, Illinois' largest volunteer based free health clinic for the uninsured (located at 2611 W. Chicago Ave.). The pharmacy fills prescriptions for uninsured, low-income patients seen at CommunityHealth. It is not open to the general public. The pharmacy utilizes a formulary based on donated brand-name medications from pharmaceutical companies, plus stock generic medications. There is no cost to the patients.

Volunteer pharmacists, with a valid Illinois license, are needed to work in the pharmacy Monday - Friday morning and afternoons, Monday - Thursday evenings and Saturday mornings. Pharmacists work with technicians, students, and other volunteers to dispense prescriptions. We are seeking volunteer pharmacists willing to work 3-4 hour shifts once a month. Responsibilities include filling prescriptions, counseling patients, and assisting in the coordination of care. Ordering medications or billing third-parties is not required. An orientation and brief training will be provided prior to volunteering. The pharmacy will have state-of-the-art computer software and brand-new amenities. We are also seeking volunteer pharmacy technicians/students available to work two 4-hour shifts per month for one year.

Interested volunteers can contact Ava Zeligson, Manager of Volunteer Services at (773) 969-5923 or by email at azeligson@communityhealth.org.

2013 Activities Included:

  • Doctors Without Borders Information Session

  • Donate to Team Amy, The Drug Information Group at UIC College of Pharmacy for Hustle Up The Hancock

2012 Activities Included:

  • Lung Health Booth at Hustle Up The Hancock with UIC Student Chapter

  • Health Booth at Greater Institutional AME Church

2011 Activities Included:

  • Walk MS 2011

2010 Activities Included:

  • "One Person, One Item." Chicago State University's ICHP Student Chapter made holiday baskets for the Mercy Family Health Center at Christmas time.  All ICHP members had an opportunity to contribute to the project by bringing items to the 2010 Leadership Retreat at Techny Towers in November.  Baskets went to elderly patients at the Mercy Family Health Center.