LYNN — Health care workers at Lynn Community Health Center believe there is a direct line between receiving health care and social justice — by helping their patients register to vote.
Through VotER, staff at the Center help patients register to vote and learn about the various ways of how to vote.
VotER is a nonpartisan organization that partners with health care professionals across the nation to provide the foundational materials for them to “transform routine healthcare visits into opportunities for civic engagement.”
Director of Primary Care Dr. Nick Urbanczyk said LCHC started engaging patients with the program in 2020 during federal elections.
“So we use medicine as a tool for social justice,” Dr. Nick Urbanczkk said.
Dr. Urbancyzk said the way it works, he could be seeing a patient for their diabetes and during the appointment, he might ask them if they are registered to vote. If they are not, he would provide the information on how to register. Professionals at the Center will also occasionally table on days such as National Voter Registration Day, which was this Tuesday.
“if patients want better food options, or more affordable housing or better transportation services… Sometimes we have to vote for those things. You have to make your voice heard for those things,” he said.
He said there are a lot of people who feel powerless due to the state of the country right now, and voting is one way to have a voice in matters.
Dr. Urbancyzk said out of the 20 patients a health care professional will see in a day, they might talk to approximately five about registering to vote. While talking to patients, professionals will give out informational sheets with a QR code that links to a portal where residents can check their voting status or register to vote if they are not already.
“We’re not going to be able to get everyone with this in face to face care, right?” he said. “But that is the grassroots approach. It’s about building relationships. ”
Dr. Urbancyzk said approximately 100 employees at LCHC walk around with a VotER badge, which also has the QR code on it.
The QR code also allows Dr. Urbanczyk to track how many patients click the links on the VotER website. According to this data, approximately 906 patients at LCHC have scanned the QR code and 116 patients have clicked the link to register to vote.
“That doesn’t mean that the patient did go to the voting booth on November 5. But again, we’re just kind of getting patients engaged in this idea between healthcare, social drivers of health, and how voting is a key component,” he said.
Dr. Urbancyzk added an example of success of the program for him was being able to help a patient who had just received their U.S. Citizenship register to vote.
“Here she is on a random day at this beautiful, mission-driven organization, and we’re going to register her,” he said.
Dr. Urbancyzk added their mission is nonpartisan and they will not try to encourage patients to vote in any particular way.
“Whatever your voice is, we want to hear it so please register,” he said.
LCHC PASS Supervisor Jennifer Mendez who was helping to register patients at the Center’s national voter registration booth on Tuesday said the center’s efforts are important because there are a lot of Spanish-speaking patients who are of a minority.
“Everything is changing, everything is getting more costly every day — food, education, insurance, and we can make a difference just by voting,” she said.
She added the she wants patients to know about mail ballots.
“If you don’t want to go somewhere just to vote, you can get the ballot mailed to your house,” she said.
Syed Paikar, a visitor to LCHC’s national voter registration booth, said he registered last time they tabled in their lobby.
“It was very simple. I moved here from Texas, I didn’t know I had to register again. So they had the barcode and I scanned it and I registered,” he said.
