Student-Run Free Clinic Project: ‘Like Family’

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This story is from the 2025 issue of Discoveries, a UC San Diego Health Sciences magazine.

The University of California San Diego School of Medicine Student-Run Free Clinic Project is the ultimate win-win environment. In addition to providing critically needed medical, dental and mental health services to its patients, the practical, hands-on experience provided to medical, dental and pharmacy students participating in the clinics’ whole-person approach to care is unsurpassed.

“The students’ experience at the clinic is transformative,” said Eduardo Fricovsky, PHARMD, clinical professor of pharmacy at UC San Diego Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences and pharmacy director of the Student-Run Free Clinic Project. “Through the clinic, they gain perspectives they would not normally receive. It is a rare model for the students to receive this type of training as part of their core curriculum.”

And the numbers confirm students’ enthusiasm for the project. For example, though working at the clinic is an elective, more than 80% of first-year medical students choose to be involved.

All first-year pharmacy students complete a one-week rotation at one of the four clinic locations. Beyond the required time, last year, 176 pharmacy students chose to volunteer at the clinic, equaling about 4,500 hours of volunteer service.

“We feel strongly that students shouldn’t just show up and expect they can help a community without first learning about the community,” said Michelle Johnson, MD, clinical professor of family medicine at UC San Diego School of Medicine and director of the Student-Run Free Clinic Project. “More than 300 medical students enroll per year in one of our elective courses, which cover topics such as health equity, working with interpreters, learning from the community, social services and working in a non-hierarchical transdisciplinary model.”

It’s not just medical and pharmacy students who volunteer at the Student-Run Free Clinic Project. Of the nearly 300 pre-health volunteers, more than 75% identify as underrepresented in medicine. Johnson notes that the hope is that those volunteers will be encouraged and motivated to move on to medical, pharmacy or dental school and other professional programs, which will improve diversity in the health care workforce.

The very heart of the Student-Run Free Clinic Project is providing humanistic and holistic care to those who would not otherwise have access to health care. The clinic provides medical and dental care for chronic issues, as well as support for conditions that can exacerbate those issues, such as food insecurity and mental health concerns.

“The patients of the clinic are so strong and resilient,” said Johnson. “They are like family to us, and our goal is to create a safe space that honors their unique journey and creates a sense of community within the clinic.”

For nearly 30 years, the Student-Run Free Clinic Project has evolved to meet the community’s needs. Changes in health policy that shift the demographics and needs of the uninsured in San Diego are a near-constant occurrence. The clinic is again ready and evolving with the 2024 expansion of MediCal, which has allowed many more people access to much-needed care.

“We have already seen a change at the clinics where patients who have been with us for 10–20 years now have insurance for the first time in their adult lives,” said Johnson. “While the expansion of Medi-Cal in 2024 has greatly improved access to care, there is still a clear need for a safety net in San Diego for affordable medical and dental care. We have seen many new patients who are just above the income requirement for Medi-Cal. We will continue to offer free care to uninsured individuals in San Diego, including people who are seeking asylum, refugees and low-income individuals without insurance.”

For the patients who receive care at the Student-Run Free Clinic Project, that dedication to providing care assures that they are seen and heard.

“The clinic is an enormous resource for the community in so many ways,” said Esmeralda Martinez, BSW, social worker for the Student Run Free Clinic Project. “Patients can come here regardless of their needs; they are at the center of everything we do. A traditional doctor’s visit may only last for approximately five minutes. Here at the clinics, the students can spend up to 30 minutes with a patient just talking to them and getting to know what is going on. We want the patients to know that they always have a place here and are always welcome.”