Dear Editor,
As many of our neighbors know, the People’s Clinic has been in a bind recently, first of all in finding a source of malpractice insurance, and then of paying for it. Our doctors, all volunteers, were wary of working without this coverage, although everyone agreed that we were (a) not likely to practice malpractice, and (b) not likely to be sued. Most suits seem to arise out of situations where the patient doesn’t fully understand what is going on, and finds him/herself with an unexpected, unforseen, or unpleasant result; since the Clinic’s whole aim is to include the patients in what is going on, with as complete explanations as we can . provide, we really never expect to be in court—but we needed to be prepared. However, we found that most insurance companies were going out of this sort of business in the first place, and had no experience in dealing with clinics like the People’s Clinic in the second place, so our search was a long one. Finally, when we were offered the insurance, we also discovered the premium!
Lacking ready cash, we discovered we had pure gold in our neighbors! Individuals, both volunteers and community residents, made donations. Churches, block units, neighborhood associations all pitched in, with the result that over $1000 was raised inside of three months. As a result, we have the malpractice insurance, and need to raise less than $400 to cover a full year’s premium; and not just doctors, but every volunteer working in the Clinic, is covered.
A neighborhood clinic takes a lot of work from a lot of people—but the support that the Clinic has gotten from the neighborhood has made it worthwhile! Thanks to everyone, including the “anonymous” donors, for your help.
Christine Smith
for the People’s Clinic people.
Originally published in The Paper, May 1976.
Read this article in the original newspaper issue.
Original source: SD_Times1976_05.pdf, printed page(s) 2; PDF page(s) 2.
