February is recognized as American Heart Month and is an opportunity to spread awareness regarding heart disease prevention. The United States commemorates the 61st annual American Heart Month in February. President Lyndon B. Johnson, a heart attack survivor, originally declared this in 1964. The American Heart Association's Go Red for Women initiative will celebrate its eleventh anniversary on National Wear Red Day in 2025. Wearing red on this day helps spread the word about heart disease and motivates people to lead healthy lives.

Jenifer started at AMM when she was a graduate student at North Carolina State University studying Physiology. After a quick Google search for “medical volunteer clinics”, AMM was the first result, and the rest is history.

At AMM, volunteers range from college students who are hoping to get into the medical field, community members looking to make a difference, congregations who build hygiene kits and provide groups for our Garden Workdays, the list goes on. Some volunteers, however, have unique ways of getting involved, and former volunteer and medical assistant Olivia Joyner is the perfect example.

What is volunteering? According to Miriam-Webster, volunteering is when “a person voluntarily undertakes or expresses a willingness to undertake a service.” Though this is the technical definition, volunteering is much more than just that! 

According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, stigma is defined as “a mark of shame or discredit,” and oftentimes is paired with the discussion on mental health; or, rather, the lack of discussion regarding mental health.

November is National Diabetes Month! This month is dedicated to raising awareness about diabetes, specifically how to prevent the disease. This issue is incredibly important to us at AMM as 48% of our patients have a diagnosis of diabetes or pre-diabetes. By making small lifestyle changes, the risk of type 2 diabetes significantly decreases and prediabetes can even be reversed.

COVID-19 has impacted how society normally operates, especially for our community's most vulnerable neighbors. Check out the WRAL interview below featuring Executive Director, Pete Tannenbaum, explaining how technology has allowed AMM to continue offering compassionate healthcare to patients throughout the pandemic.

Today is National Doctor’s Day, and in the past year it has become glaringly obvious just how crucial our healthcare providers really are. Take a chance to honor the hard work and dedication doctors provide to their communities all across the country today (and every day!).

The coronavirus has upended our lifestyles and brought about a tidal wave of uncertainty into our futures.  What can we do to manage our mental health in the midst of so much change? 

Isabel Barcenas-Valadez is a Certified Nursing Assistant at Alliance Medical Ministry. Among her responsibilities are welcoming our patients and orienting them on their visit, obtaining their vital signs, and informing them about our wellness programs (yoga, Zumba, cooking classes, and diabetes education).

Pablo Escobar, clinic director for Alliance Medical Ministry, discusses efforts to help North Carolina’s uninsured in a radio interview with NC Policy Watch.

“For a nonprofit, every dollar saved is one that can be put toward achieving its mission. At Alliance Medical Ministry in Raleigh, N.C., Executive Director Pete Tannenbaum looked at his energy bill and thought there was an opportunity to save.