By Talia Myers
When it comes to improving diabetes outcomes, pharmacist Rusty Curington knows numbers matter. He also knows numbers don’t tell the whole story. Curington is vice president of pharmacy for the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, a Cincinnati-area nonprofit dedicated to caring for low-income community members. St. Vincent de Paul operates charity pharmacies at three locations, in addition to other services. Curington is quick to remind us that 61 percent of his pharmacy’s patients have diabetes. 100 people visit the St. Vincent de Paul food pantry each day to receive food assistance. It will likely take about six to 12 months to help improve the health of a diabetic patient and connect them to a permanent medical home. His team provides these and other services at no cost to patients, with 200 volunteers donating their time. Their comprehensive diabetes management efforts are bolstered by Pantry4Health, a new nutrition-focused program. The program was created with a $115,000 award from Direct Relief, provided through a grant from the Baxter International Foundation, to create the Transformational Innovation in Community Health Award. Launched in 2019, the Transformational Innovation Award supports community health centers, free and charitable clinics, and nonprofit health care organizations that use nutrition to improve health outcomes for noncommunicable diseases, including diabetes. St. Vincent de Paul was one of five recipients for 2023. Pantry4Health provides nutrition education to diabetes patients and helps them create healthy meals using ingredients from the food pantry. This has become an integral part of a larger monitoring, education, support, and planning journey that teaches pharmacy patients to effectively manage their diabetes over the long term. Curinton reported that Pantry4Health has provided nutrition education to 843 patients so far and healthy meal kits to another 1,060 people. But health is not just about numbers. Key to Pantry 4 Health's success is soliciting feedback and talking about the lives and experiences of patients (or “neighbors,” as staff and volunteers call them). “It's hard to measure, it's anecdotal, but it really gets to know people,” Curinton said. The word “neighbor” isn't used lightly, it's a cornerstone of his philosophy. “I'm no different to the person in front of me,” he explained. “There's a label of equality, and a recognition that if there wasn't something different about me, I'd be in the same position.”
Nutrition education begins as soon as diabetic patients begin working with pharmacy staff. Learning to manage blood sugar levels is as essential as setting and working toward lifestyle and nutrition goals. Staff follow detailed protocols of monitoring, follow-up, and evaluation. Through interactive demonstrations in the pharmacy's teaching kitchen, dietitians teach healthy cooking skills. Pantry4Health began with an emphasis on donated fresh foods, but Curington quickly learned that produce was too risky. It spoiled quickly, took too long, and people were not comfortable with what was being offered. Now, the program teaches pharmacy patients to cook healthy meals using shelf-stable ingredients found in the food pantry. Dietitians and nutrition interns develop simple recipes based on current offerings and put them together. Condiments are purchased in bulk, combined, and weighed for each roundup. New recipes and roundups are provided monthly. Staff is always open to feedback. For example, one patient who is homeless and has no place to cook came up with a recipe for no-bake peanut butter balls with walnuts, oats and cinnamon. A can opener is kept in the pantry because many people don't have one. “The meal I learned today was vegetarian, which is very helpful for me as a diabetic,” said one patient who received nutrition education from Pantry4Health. “We are moving soon, so this will be the first meal I make for my family in our new home. It was delicious!”
Sometimes inspiration comes out of necessity. The recipe for Hawaii's beloved tuna bowl came when canned tuna was no longer needed on pantry shelves. “We have to get rid of this tuna,” recalls Currington, who says the recipe developer mixed in coconut flakes and pineapple. The despair over canned salmon was resolved when a receptionist who grew up in the South taught the rest of the staff how to make salmon croquettes. Chickpeas and couscous were not popular. “Nobody knew what to do with them.” But they weren't popular until the Mediterranean bowl recipe was born. The Transformative Innovation Award also served as a springboard for new partnerships, including with the University of Cincinnati. St. Vincent de Paul now offers internships to nutrition students who want to focus on caring for vulnerable communities. “We didn't have a program to attract them before,” Currington says. “We brag a lot when we get funding from nonprofits. It really helps build credibility and attract more funding.” Providing free medications and chronic disease management (St. Vincent de Paul's three pharmacies have no cash registers) requires thinking strategically about long-term goals. Carrington doesn't want to grow a patient roster or have a loyal following. “If we just keep bringing in people, we're not going to be able to[see]new patients,” he says. The end goal is “to help people get out of the safety net. No one wants to live in the safety net.”
It's a complicated process, helping patients enroll in insurance, learn to exercise and manage their medical conditions, and develop a plan to maintain their health and well-being, including weaning off medications if possible. This typically takes six months to a year, but patients who need longer-term support to follow through on their plan can get help. Carrington knows inflation, housing shortages and a changing public insurance landscape work against people who are already vulnerable. People who turn to St. Vincent de Paul because they can't pay rent or afford their medication need immediate support, but they also need a partner to help them build stability over time. St. Vincent de Paul's goal is to be that partner, Carrington explained. Volunteers and interns are there because they want their neighbors to thrive. “We blend our love for our town, our love for our community, and we blend that into our mission,” he said.
