Mabuhay: Free Health Center in San Francisco

Who doesn’t have the issue of health care in mind these days? It is a pressing concern for many, and the Filipino-American community is not exempt. That’s why I was very glad to learn of a free health center that will be opening in San Francisco, California.

Many barrios in the Philippines have free health clinics run by the Philippine government, to meet the medical needs of the disadvantaged in provinces far from Manila. In the same bayanihan spirit, a group of medical students, led by Alvin Teodoro, came together to provide free health care to the Filipino-American community and residents of the South of Market (SOMA) District of San Francisco. Thus, the Mabuhay Health Center (MHC) was born.

The free clinic, which will officially open on December 5, 2009, will be held every second Saturday, beginning January 9, 2010. It will be run by health/medical students from the University of California San Francisco, in partnership with the SoMa Health Center and the Bayanihan Community Center. The services offered include health screenings, vaccinations and prescription refills.

This is really what bayanihan is all about, when members of the community come together to offer their help to those who need it, freely and with compassion. Kudos to Alvin and the rest of the MHC Team!

Mabuhay Health Center (map)
1010 Mission Street, Suite B
San Francisco, CA 94103

Grand Opening
2:30 – 5:00 p.m.
December 5, 2009

Free Clinics
8:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Every Second Saturday of the month beginning on January 9, 2010

image via Mabuhay Health Center