The University Muslim Medical Association (UMMA) community clinic aims to serve as a non-profit clinic to service those of the South Los Angeles community who might lack health insurance, be unemployed, or possibly be impoverished by providing free healthcare services. Originally established in 1996 by undergraduate and graduate students attending the University of California, Los Angeles the clinic now seeks to ensure that the inhabitants of the surrounding community receive proper medical treatment and has since serviced 15,000 patients in the last four years.
The clinic originated as a student run organization with roots in the Muslim Student Association atUCLA. Since its origin, the clinic has continued to hold strong relations with the campus it originated from by establishing the UMMA Volunteer Project (UVP) to correspond with its various programs and events in which volunteer participation is needed. This project not only benefits the UMMA community clinic by providing them with a core UCLA volunteer base but also by serving as a volunteer channel for those in the surrounding areas. Furthermore, UVP offers valuable opportunities to those UCLA students who would like to gain hands-on experience in the health related field, as well as provide those students with leadership and clinical experience.
In conjunction with the UVP, UMMA clinic is resolved to not only provide treatment for immediate healthcare concerns but to also, practice preventative medicine to combat health ailments afflicting the general surrounding community. This is not only done by means of their clinic, but though various other services and community outreach events held to increase community cognizance and awareness. These events include, but are not limited to health fairs, the annual tax day, the Reach Out and Read program,and the Family Hike Day.
To further address the needs of the underserved community, UVP is launching a new site at the New Horizon School located in South Los Angeles. With a high number of UCLA students willing to volunteer, the UMMA community clinic and UVP has responded by creating a health education series positing to combat obesity through physical fitness and nutrition education. UVP intends on obtaining this goal by attending site every Sunday for an hour and a half, where 30 minutes are spent in an engaging and informative workshop, meant to provide health information, and then the remaining 60 minutes willbe spent in physical activity. This new program will continue to service the South Los Angeles community and falls in line with both UMMA and UVP's purpose to both provide immediate and preventative healthcare.
Finally, to service its own volunteer population UVP intends on holding a Medical Spanish Workshop aimed to educate and inform its volunteers with a class where common Spanish medical vernacular will be taught. By conducting this workshop, volunteers will become familiarized with Spanish medical terms and basic Spanish to better accommodate servicing UMMA clinic's large Latino patient demographic. UVP intends on ensuring that this workshop is beneficial to its volunteer base by holding follow-up 10 minute review lessons during Volunteer staff meetings.
A few extra details:
UVP Admin Meetings are held weekly on Mondays at 8:00PM.
Site locations and times:
- UMMA clinic (shifts vary, see the calendar for exact details
- Fremont High School - TBD
- New Horizon Elementary - Mondays 4-5pm, Feb. 6, Feb. 13, Feb. 27, March 5, and March 11.
For more information please email us at umma.clinic.vol@gmail.com
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