"You feel a little more isolated here," he said. "But the patients are so grateful. I just saw a woman, and for her to find somebody that seemed to just care about her problem really meant a lot to her. She teared up. That's common here."

Clinic director Stan Reid was asked to volunteer because of his background as a Spanish teacher of 34 years. His wife, Patty, who serves as clinic nursing supervisor, worked as a nurse in the Utah County Health Department, but Stan had no other medical background before volunteering at the clinic.

"They came after (Patty), and they got me, too, because I could speak Spanish," he said. "I had no medical expertise; I'm a professional schoolteacher. But I've applied that organization here."

Reid said it is fulfilling for him to volunteer at the clinic because he is helping to meet a real need.

"People are here because there are people that are suffering, and frightened, that have no place to go," he said. "Although we can't solve everyone's problems, we can solve a few of the problems one person at a time."

The Reids admit there are challenges but said ultimately the work is its own reward.

"We go home feeling we've reached out and helped people," Stan Reid said. "Of course there are some challenges. Is everyone honest? We don't know. We're taking them at their word. If we're going to err, we'll err in favor of the patients."

Some patients at the clinic who need to receive additional, specialized care are referred to Community Health Connect, a nonprofit advocacy group that connects qualifying patients with medical specialists willing to donate their time and services to give back to the community.

"It's good because it serves two purposes: First of all, it allows the doctors to do charitable works, and they don't have to worry too much about looking for those people," said agency medical coordinator Jose Rodriquez. "The second purpose is that people who are underserved medically get to have services from the doctors on a charity basis or at reduced cost. So that part of the population gets served."

Rodriguez said the group sometimes struggles to find enough physicians willing to be part of the network, mostly because they aren't aware of the program.

"In the past, it has been difficult to get the word out," he said. "But the more doctors that we have, the more people we can provide these services for, so that's always a big boon, if we can get more doctors to participate with us."

The clinic has been nearly overwhelmed at the response from patients needing treatment. Gadd said he and other clinic personnel are looking for more resources and creative ways to meet the demand.

"There is a need," he said. "The problem we're having is finding how best we can meet those needs with the resources we have."

Physicians interested in volunteering should inquire in person at the clinic on the first floor of the Utah County Health and Justice Building, 151 S. University Ave., Provo, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. each Tuesday and Thursday.

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E-mail: mdecker@desnews.com