Ambur Brewsky distinctly remembers a conversation with a man in his early 30's at the Food and Care Coalition. A mental illness kept him bouncing in and out of jobs, forcing him into a life on the streets. Brewsky listened in shock, as the man told of his struggles to survive the cold winter nights in Provo.

"It didn't occur to me that homeless people had to sleep outside," Brewsky said. "That realization made a big impact on me."

Brewsky is one of the many student nurses from BYU that perform weekly medical checkups at the Food and Care Coalition in Provo. Most of the clients lack health insurance and turn to the FACC after frustrations with other medical services.

"Clients often wait four to six hours to be seen at the emergency room and then hospital employees begrudgingly give them service," said JoAnne Abegglan, associate professor of nursing at BYU. "The clients personally felt that no one really cared about them. The emergency room was the last place they wanted to go."

Abegglan said many clients feel the FACC is the only place they can explain their health history and ask the student nurses questions without getting brushed off.

"The thing that impresses me about these nurses is that they're so enthusiastic," said Lynn Cannon, the mentor director at FACC. "They don't just give the clients tests but also give pointers afterwards."

At the FACC, student nurses serve up to 25 clients meals and then offer blood pressure tests, vaccinations, wound treatments and foot care.

"Clients tell me they're amazed that these cute little girls [nurses] would wash their dirty feet after they've walked around in the same shoes and socks all winter," Abegglan said.

Providing care to patients with no money for insurance can present challenges, the students said.

"I had someone come in with a blood pressure over 200," Brewsky said. "It was hard for me because I couldn't tell them to do any of the regular things we're taught in nursing school like go to the doctor, get medication, or change in diet because they can't afford any of these things."

The program at the FACC requires student nurses to record journal entries about their service, as part of their required community clinical experience in the nursing program at BYU.

(For comments, e-mail Michelle Lizon at mlizon@gmail.com)

Copyright Brigham Young University 30 Jan 2006