Clínica Tepati is one of the oldest existing student-run clinics. It was established in 1974, driven by the passion and dedication of a group of UC Davis students and faculty from the medical school.
Our founders set out to address serious long-term issues in the healthcare delivery system and to integrate primary care involvement that is usually excluded in the traditional medical curriculum. They established a three-part mission of health service, education, and advocacy geared towards their desire to serve a vulnerable segment of the Latino community as part of the growing Chicano Movement in the 1970s. With the support of community members and the UC Davis Department of Family and Community Medicine, the project gave rise to Clínica Tepati. "Tepati," the Nahuatl word for "healer," was chosen as the symbol for incorporating cultural identity with a genuine desire to serve.
We are an entirely student run clinic. Our volunteers are our superheroes. We are a family, comprised of undergraduate volunteers, professional student volunteers (including physician assistant students, medical students, and pharmacy students), and preceptor volunteers (licensed healthcare professionals).
Often our patients are our most powerful advocates; through word of mouth, they are encouraging others to come to Tepati and change their life for the better. Clínica Tepati is able to function due in large part to the countless volunteer hours that the undergraduates, professional students, and preceptors have contributed toward maintaining Tepati. For the past 48 years, all the hard work that has gone into keeping Tepati open has been for the purpose of ultimately benefiting those patients for whom Tepati is the only health resource readily available to them.
Our patients are our number one priority, they are the glue that holds our family together.
Clínica Tepati operates under a three-part mission rooted in providing equitable health services, life-long education, and patient advocacy. Our advocacy stems from the belief that healthcare is an inherent right for all people. We will continue to provide free healthcare services to the under-served communities of Sacramento. Our volunteers will have the unique opportunity to be leaders within the community and gain clinical experiences to prepare them for their future professional endeavors.
The three pillars of our mission statement are the foundation for the care that we provide, and we aim to promote all three in every patient interaction clinic day. Our mission statement unites us all in our efforts to provide our patients with the highest quality of care.
In order to continue providing specialty and social services (Diabetes Education, Mental Health Support, Legal Aid, etc.) which address the preventative care needs of our patients and provide preventative care training for our students, Clínica Tepati needs help with funding.
A portion of the funding will go towards aiding patients who demonstrate a sufficient financial burden by offering either a 50% co-pay coverage or a full coverage on prescription medications depending on patients' needs. These subsidies will be offered to patients whose medications are not covered by the Patient Assistance Programs (PAP). Data from our pharmacy committee shows a projected total of approximately $11,000 dollars annually spent on medications and reimbursements.
Additional expenses go towards providing free medical supplies to our patients such as blood pressure cuffs and glucometers. Tepati also needs funds to provide financial support for patients facing food and/or homelessness insecurity.
Funding helps Clínica Tepati to continue being an advocate for our community by expanding our services to better meet the needs of our patients. Aside from our focus on primary care, we strive to provide additional services throughout the year including dermatology, podiatry, and flu/vaccine specialty clinics. Another major goal moving forward will be to continue and develop new partnerships that allow our organization to have an active role serving the Sacramento community.
In order for Clínica Tepati to continue delivering quality healthcare services to our patients we hope to gain access to medical imaging machines like magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computerized tomography (CT) scan. The equipment would not only allow us to potentially minimize the costs of these services, it would also help increase accessibility for our patients to receive such care more quickly.
Overall, our utmost priority is to apply our funds towards meeting and exceeding the needs of our patients.
Organization name
Clínica Tepati
Tax id (EIN)
94-2324682
Mission Category
Health Care
Operating Budget
$50,001 - $100,000
Organization Need
Funding: Program, Funding: Other, Technology
Demographics Served
Immigrants & refugees, Hispanic/Latino/Latina/Latinx, Low-income individuals/families
Local Counties Served
Sacramento, Yolo
Address
1820 J St.Sacramento, CA, US