Standards in Medical-Legal Partnerships

Complex demands of patients’ socially, culturally, and politically situated health needs have given rise to what have become known as medical-legal partnerships (MLPs). An MLP is a model of US-based health and legal service provision that generally looks to offer combined, single-site interprofessional responses to patients whose health status and access to health services can be compromised by their need for legal help. Patients who are immigrants, were recently incarcerated, or lack reliable and safe shelter or employment, for example, can experience health vulnerabilities that call for legal expertise, perhaps in the form of advice; aid in petitioning a court or program; referral; representation in administrative proceedings; or advocacy. This theme issue investigates strategies by which clinicians and attorneys should work together to screen for and ably respond with care to legal determinants of patients’ health. 

 

Volume 26, Number 8: E591-664 Full Issue PDF