Case Statement

Over the last 15 years, the South of Market neighborhood has witnessed the construction of 21 affordable housing projects providing some 2,210 units of new housing. As a result, SMHC has felt the intense pressure to respond to the increasing health care and medical needs of adults and children living in this region. Additional concerns include:

• The current medical clinic which is located on Minna Street has been declared "earthquake unsafe" by the City of San Francisco.
  
  
• Changes in the demographics of the SOMA, in conjunction with health related data, show a growing need among low-income families, immigrants and seniors for the services currently being provided by SMHC.
  
  
• The current state of the economy and its impact on the increasing rate of unemployment and the reduction of health services have had a devastating impact on the numbers and circumstances of the very, very poor of our community who come to SMHC.
  
  
• All administrative personnel must be housed in a location at 1091 Mission Street. Maintaining this separate administrative center is costly and cumbersome for overseeing program operations.
  
  

Additionally, the current location on Minna Street is situated in an environment that significantly compromises the health center’s desire to meet the needs of its clients in that it is:

• Located in an alley off the infamous “Sixth Street Corridor”
  
  
• Has poor visibility and is not recognizable from any distance as a health center
  
  
• Unsafe and has security concerns due to its proximity to the Sixth Street Corridor
  
  
• Not appealing to vulnerable patients (e.g. families with children and seniors)
  
  
• Not easily accessible by public transportation
  
  
• Difficult to access due to the fact there is no parking lot and street parking is extremely limited
  
  

These circumstances challenge the day-to-day service delivery efforts of SMHC, as the only service provider of primary and acute medical services to the underserved and marginalized residents of the South of Market area; restrict SMHC’s ability to respond to the growing needs of its service area; and, prohibit SMHC to provide comprehensive health care services in a cost-effective manner.

To respond to the lack of an adequate health care infrastructure in this region, SMHC is embarking on a bold venture to provide more services to more men, women and children who desperately need health care services.