UMMA Clinic Honored by the U.S. House of Representatives

The UMMA Clinic in Los Angeles is the first charitable medical institution established by Muslim Americans in the United States. Now in its 10th year, UMMA is the acronym for the University Muslim Medical Association.

Here’s a short video of the UMMA Clinic in action. It was recently honored with a special address on the floor of the US House of Representatives.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=z_p9dU5s3vg

The Clinic cares for 17,000 patients in South Central Los Angeles, one of the poorest inner-city communties in the U.S., over 95% of whom are Latino and African Americans. Indeed, UMMA’s was aim was to serve humanity at large, not just Muslims.

UMMA was started by UCLA students, opening its doors in 1996 after a 5 year struggle to set it up. Their goal was to create a clinic that would serve the local population, irrespective of race or creed. It was done as an expression of their Islamic faith, based on the premise that Muslims can best exemplify their faith through their good works. However, they stressed a collaborative approach, working with local government, and other institutions, and garnering support from people from diverse faiths and backgrounds

The students first approached the LA City Councilperson for the South Central area, and with her help, they received $1.2 million in grant money from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the city’s development department. With the money, a former crack-house was transformed into a state-of-the-art medical facility.

Starting first as a volunteer-based clinic operating 2 days a week, UMMA now has 15 fulltime employees, and draws upon a large pool of volunteer physicians from every conceivable faith and background. UMMA is also a teaching facility, and medical students and resident physicians work here as part of their training programs at UCLA , Childrens Hospital and other institutions.

After the initial start up money from HUD, the clinic relies on a combination of grants from private foundations, contracts and programs with county and state health departments, and the rest from private donations, mostly from the local Muslim American community. Several weeks ago, UMMA raised nearly $350,000 at a fundraising dinner attended by over
1,000 local Muslim Americans.

UMMA has increasingly been the focus of mainstream attention, receiving a special recognition before the US House of Representatives, in addition to special commendations by the Los Angeles City Council and the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors. It also has received the National Philanthropy Day award for outstanding volunteer project.

Recently, the federal government awarded UMMA with its federally qualified health center (FQHC) look-alike status, a highly competitive and desirable status that will make it eligible for special federal grant money.

UMMA Clinic, 711 W. Florence Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90040