Feel Good Friday - La Clinica

Many people prioritize their health in the new year which inspired me to highlight my neighborhood community health center, La Clinica, in today's Feel Good Friday.

La Clinica de La Raza, more commonly referred to as La Clinica, was founded in 1971 with the mission "to improve the quality of life of the diverse communities we serve by providing culturally appropriate, high quality, and accessible health care for all."

In it's early days, La Clinica was a free clinic run by volunteers "to provide greater health care access in the Latino community located in the East Bay Area of California." Today, La Clinca has expanded to 35 sites in 6 cities across Alameda, Contra Costa and Solano counties. Click here for a full list of locations.

Their services include those you would expect: medical, dental, vision, prenatal and postnatal care, health and nutrition education and pharmacy services to name a few. There are also more unique programs targeted to the communities in which they work.

Project New Start provides gang-related youth with tattoo removal, mentoring and social support services to help them take the first steps towards escaping gang life. De Colores is program "mobilizing young gay, bisexual men and trans women of color in the East Bay Area, ages 17-29, to shape a safer and healthier community." Community Health Education programs include youth peer education, day laborer outreach and support groups for Latina women living with HIV.

In 2017, La Clinica served 87,000 patients, 95% of whom are low-income. If you'd like to help La Clinica with their mission of health care for all, you can volunteer, donate and spread the word about the work they do by liking their Facebook page following them on Twitter @La_Clinica_