AN INTEGRATED PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN THE UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI AND COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS. T. Redington 1 ; 1 College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH OBJECTIVES: 1. Identify the common interests of both academic health centers and community health centers that cause them to be natural partners. 2. Demonstrate the unprecented level of support that the University of Cincinnati has shown in preserving the capacity of community health centers. 3. Describe the team approach adopted by the providers of the Cincinnati Health Network, Cincinnati Health Department,University of Cincinnati Hospital clinics, and Southern Ohio Health Network, which included a common eligibility system and data sharing thoughout the delivery system. 4. Discuss this common approach to patient eligiblity and clinical care includes disease management protocols for asthma, diabetes, hypertension and depression. This common clinical approach is expected to improve if not eliminate health disparities, consistent with the Bureau of Primary Health Care's 100% access, 0% disparities goal. METHODS: The University of Cincinnati has budgeted 2 million dollars of inkind support for all the center sites of the Cincinnati Health Network. This support includes a pharmacy with pharmacist, radiology suite, midwives, and 12 full time providers, eleven are physicians. These physicians are extensively involved in medical student education at these center sites. Also the University led the successful effort to recieve a million dollar grant (from HRSA the Community Access Program) to improve the infrastructure around the indigent and uninsured in Southern Ohio. The major partners include the University, a hospital of the Health Alliance of Greater Cincinnati, a five hospital system in southerwestern Ohio, the Cincinnati Health Network, the Southern Ohio Health Network(both Federally Qualified Health Centers),and the Cincinnati Health Department. Together, these partners serve about 200,000 lives, 90% are at or below the minimum federal poverty level. RESULTS: The quality of care standards around depression, hypertension, asthma and depression have been installed. The information technology infrastructure and eligibility systems are being developed and linked between different computing platforms. The measurement of our quality of care will begin later this calendar year. Medical education in these clinic sites is extensive, about three quarters of the medical student class are being educated in these sites.