How is care provided at the Owen Clinic?
What happens if I ever need hospitalization?
What happens after I leave the hospital?
What about research studies?
What if I have complaints or compliments?
How is care provided at the Owen Clinic?
Experienced teams of physicians, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners provide primary medical services. Each time you have a scheduled appointment at the Owen Clinic, we make every effort to ensure that you have a follow-up visit with your primary provider team. However, because of our high patient volume and urgent visits, it is sometimes necessary to refer you to another team; if this happens, we will consult your primary provider team to update your progress.
As part of the UCSD Medical Center, Owen Clinic medical staff members train medical students, interns, resident physicians in internal medicine, and physicians from the community who are interested in caring for persons living with HIV and AIDS. At some times, these various practitioners may participate in your care.
What happens if I ever need hospitalization?
If you require hospitalization, a ward team consisting of an attending physician, resident, intern and medical student will provide your care. The intern is the primary physician who plans and coordinates your care. The resident physician supervises the intern and medical student. The attending physician, a UCSD faculty member, oversees the operations of the entire team; s/he guides the team in solving diagnostic problems and is responsible for all major decisions about your treatment plan.
Because of staff limitations and the large number of clinic patients, your primary team physician at the Owen Clinic may not be your attending physician if you are hospitalized. However, clinic providers make daily rounds in the hospital and assist the ward team. Additionally, should you require home care afrter discharge from the hospital, the home health coordinator will arrange home care services.
What happens after I leave the hospital?
Once the hospital discharges you, your Owen Clinic primary provider team will continue to care for you. In general, you will return to the clinic for a follow-up visit within one week of discharge.
What about research studies?
We invite patients of the Owen Clinic to participate in clinical trials at the UCSD Antiviral Research Center (AVRC), located at 150 West Washington (corner of Washington and Front streets). The AVRC studies experimental therapies (vaccines and medications) for HIV and AIDS as well as improvements on current medications for the treatment and prevention of infections. The AVRC provides medications and laboratory testing to study participants at no cost. Even if you choose to enroll in a research study, you will continue to receive primary care from your team at Owen Clinic. Please call 543-8080 for more information or check the AVRC website at http://www.avrctrials.org/.
What if I have complaints or compliments?
Should you have concerns about your experience as a patient at the Owen Clinic, please inform your primary provider team or ask to speak with the clinic's "Patient Ombudsman," a volunteer who serves as an intermediary between you and clinic staff. You also have the option of contacting the UCSD Patient Relations (We Listen Program) at (619) 543-5678. We also welcome your compliments.