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'{{Refimprove|date=August 2008}} A '''free clinic''' is a [[clinic|medical facility]] offering community [[healthcare]] on a free or very low-cost basis in countries with marginal or no [[universal health care]]. Care is generally provided in these clinics to persons who have lower or limited income and no [[health insurance]], including persons who are not eligible for US [[Medicaid]] or [[Medicare (United States)|Medicare]] programs. In the US, almost all free clinics provide care for acute, non-emergent conditions. Many also provide a full range of primary care (including preventive care) and care for chronic conditions. Some free clinics include licensed [[pharmacy|pharmacies]] and [[dentistry|dental]] services. ==History== The modern notion of a free clinic began in the 1960’s in [[San Francisco]] when Dr. David Smith founded the [[Haight Ashbury Free Clinics]] in 1967 <ref>Seymour, Richard (1987). The Haight Ashbury Free Medical Clinics: Still free after all these years, 1967-1987. San Francisco, California: Partisan Press. </ref> during the [[summer of love]] in the Haight Ashbury district. Free clinics quickly spread to other [[California]]n cities and the rest of the United States. In 1972 a meeting was held at the [[Shoreham Hotel]] in Washington DC where clinic staff from around the country gathered and listened to speakers including Dr. Smith. At this meeting the slogan “Health Care is a Right Not a Privilege” emerged as a theme. During the 1970s and 80’s free clinics continued to evolve and change to meet the needs of their individual communities, however some were unable to survive. Each free clinic was unique in its development and services, based on the particular needs and resources of the local community. There is a saying among free clinic organizations that if you have been to one free clinic you have been to one free clinic. The common denominator is that care is made possible through the service of volunteers, the donation of goods and community support. Funding is generally donated on the local level and there is little —if any— government funding. Some free clinics were established to provide medical services in the inner cities while others opened in the suburbs and many student-run free clinics have emerged that serve the under-served as well as provide a medical training site for students in the health professions. While both free and community clinics provide many similar services, free clinics today are defined by the US National Association of Free Clinics [http://www.freeclinics.us/AboutUs/WhatisaFreeClinic/tabid/63/Default.aspx] as “private, non-profit, community based organizations that provide medical, dental, pharmaceutical and/or mental health services at little or no cost to low-income, uninsured and under insured people. They accomplish this through the use of volunteer health professionals and community volunteers, along with partnerships with other health providers.” Some free clinics rival local government health departments in size and scope of service with multi-million dollar budgets, specialized clinics and numerous locations. ==Free clinics internationally== ===[[Cape Town]], [[South Africa]]=== ====[[SHAWCO]] - The Students' Health And Welfare Centres Organisation==== Founded in 1943 by a medical student who was moved to action by the need he saw in the impoverished communities of pre-[[Apartheid]] South Africa, [[SHAWCO]] has delivered free primary health care in under-privileged communities in the [[Cape Town]] area for over 60 years. <ref>Selzer G, Gordon H. SHAWCO: the students' health and welfare centres Organization of the University of Cape Town. SAMJ. 1963 (Jan 19); Vol. 37, pp. 58-9.</ref> Since its inception, the organisation has grown into one of the largest student volunteer organisations on the African continent, with over 1200 student volunteers running over 15 health and education projects.Based at the [[University of Cape Town]], the [[free clinics]] run by [[SHAWCO]] rely on volunteer medical and allied health science students in all years of study and qualified doctors. <ref>Katz, D. The Students' Health and Welfare Centre (SHAWCO). British journal of medical education. 1967; 1 (3):178-182.</ref> ==Departure of community clinics== Eventually a schism evolved among clinics where some held fast to the idea that services should be provided free of charge to the patient while others felt that the services should be paid at least in part by the patient. This second group of clinics became know as community clinics and would offer services on some sort of sliding fee schedule based on the patient's ability to pay. In the early 1970’s [[Ramparts Magazine]] said that in order to survive, free clinics would have to be equally active providing service as they were with the [[mimeograph machine]]. In other words, the service provided by the doctors was of equal importance to insuring that people have a right to health. ==See also== *[[SHAWCO|The Students' Health And Welfare Centres Organisation]], a [[University of Cape Town]] student-run organisation offering free clinics in [[Cape Town]], [[South Africa]] *[[Berkeley Free Clinic]], a nonprofit clinic in California. *[[University of Kentucky Salvation Army Clinic]], a student-run free clinic. *[[UCSD Student-Run Free Clinic Project]], a student-run free clinic in San Diego, California. ==References== {{reflist}} == External links == *[http://www.freeclinics.us National Association of Free Clinics] *[http://www.tcsdaily.com/Article.aspx?id=103007B TCSDaily Article] about free clinics *[http://yourstdhelp.com/free_clinic_locator.html List of Free Clinics State by State] Meant for STD's but they offer most services. [[Category:Types of healthcare facilities]] [[fr:Dispensaire]]'