How can health professions students understand the impacts of life circumstances on health? Each summer, students of medicine and other health disciplines imbed in an array of community organizations in cities in Pennsylvania and southern New Jersey as part of a seven-week program known as Bridging the Gaps. The program gives students the opportunity to work in interdisciplinary teams to address community needs while they learn how the health of individuals is shaped by the communities in which they live.
As the program reaches its 35th anniversary, a new documentary, “This Too Is Healthcare: Bridging the Gaps,” follows several health professions students as they step beyond university lecture rooms and hospital walls into community organizations that confront health inequities.
At Learn Serve Lead 2026: The AAMC Annual Meeting this November, attendees will have an opportunity to attend a screening of “This Too is Healthcare: Bridging the Gaps,” followed by a discussion led by André Robert Lee, director and writer of the film; Donald Schwarz, MD, MPH, MBA, founding faculty member of Bridging the Gaps and former deputy mayor for health and opportunity and health commissioner of Philadelphia; and Anthony Singleton, founding president and CEO of Educators 4 Education and a long-time collaborator with Bridging the Gaps.
AAMCNews recently spoke with Lee and Schwarz about the program and its legacy. Read more from the AAMC News.
