First D.O. appointed to Chicago House Board of Trustees

By Matthew Bates 

Eric Beck, D.O. (’08), was recently appointed to the board of trustees for Chicago House, an organization that, since 1985, provides housing and support services to individuals and families affected both by HIV/AIDS and by homelessness, marginal housing or unemployment.

Beck is the second physician, and the first D.O., to serve on the Chicago House Board of Trustees. The organization focuses on social issues affecting public health, and Beck finds its mission consistent with the osteopathic medical philosophy. He hopes to bring an “understanding of that interplay between social variables and medical variables,” based on his osteopathic medical training.

Beck began volunteering at Chicago House after relocating to Chicago last year. He trains Chicago House social workers to integrate elements such as medical literacy, medication adherence, employment training and peer-based support systems into HIV patient advocacy plans.

He also participates in the organization’s South Side Task Force, focused on expanding Chicago House’s presence in the south side of the city, which reports a disproportionately high number of HIV cases.

In June, Beck will begin his third year of an emergency medicine residency at the University of Chicago Medical Center. Training in inner-city hospitals has shown Beck the importance of Chicago House’s mission. “I see the consequences of homeless, marginally-housed, unemployed, HIV-positive families on every shift.”