Berkeley Free Clinic

Let’s be real, the Berkeley Free Clinic has saved many of us who needed a TB test in a hurry or free without the hassle of traveling to our appointed local doctor or taking a huge portion of our schedule.
The procedure for walk-​ins is simple. Call as soon as the line opens for walk-​in appointments. It might have changed but in 2013 this was 5:30pm? Or around that time. The line might be busy (they have at least 3 lines but a lot of people call) but be patient and keep trying. 75% of the time, you’ll get lucky and can get seen that same business day.
The Berkeley Free Clinic is located in a small enclave of a church. I filled out a few forms, read as I waited to get seen, and got my TB test! You have to return after a couple of days but the second visit is much faster.
I believe they also provide free dental appointments for less fortunate community members. Super organized and every volunteer absolutely LOVES what he/​she is doing at the clinic.

Their wait times have improved. Not only that, but they offer so many services and all of the volunteers are excellent. I donate $ 20 every now and then and have needed to use BFC while I am in between jobs — temping doesn’t offer health insurance — and recently visited them to get a TB test for a new job that DOES come with health insurance!
This clinic is a gem for the underserved or for those who want confidential and friendly/​non-​judgmental healthcare services. A+++!

it’s free? how better can that get! of course, at the end I donated.
i called at 5:45pm that day and was put on the waitlist. they gave me a call back 1 hr later to tell me if i got an apt. for that night or not. I GOT THE APPT. YAY! On the phone they verified my name, number, and reason for visit. they also stated if it was okay to get my shots done by trained students. i was skeptical at first, but i asked them if they were properly trained and if the needles were new. (i didn’t want to contract any diseases !!!) she said i have nothing to worry about, so i confirmed my apt. my apt was at 8:30pm.
before arriving at the clinic, i was worried for parking because they said it’s very limited parking. since my apt. was late at night, i was scared to park couple blocks away and walk by myself to the clinic (berk. could be a dangerous place at night!!). luckily, i found parking RIGHT in front of the clinic!
entering the clinic… the place was kinda old and dirty looking, but it didn’t bother me.
Although the clinic is run by students and/​or just graduated nurses, it’s very professional. the staff was very nice and friendly. the wait was about 10 – 15 min. once they called me inside, a female and male student from ucb introduced themselves and asked me health questions. they also informed me about the TB Shot and flu shot i was getting. then, they performed it on me! very good job… didn’t hurt at all.
the only weird thing about this place is that it’s first come first serve. so, if you want to have an apt. THAT DAY, u have to call in THAT DAY at 5:45 pm to have a 50% chance of getting an apt. THAT DAY. if you don’t get it, you have to call the next day at the same time to see if you get it for that day or not. you are not allowed to call in .for example on monday to get it done for tuesday. the day u call, is the day you have that 50% apt.

I am a counselor with the BFC in the Peer Counseling Collective.
It is an amazing community full of compassionate, intelligent, competent people with diverse experiences, backgrounds and expertise.
The BFC has been an institution in Berkeley for forty years and all of its volunteers are deeply committed to the mission of providing care in various forms to anyone who needs it and to treating each person as an individual with dignity and respect.
As collectives and free services go, this might not be the best place for you if you are looking for really speedy service. But if you are looking for care from well-​trained laypeople who will see you as a whole person, this is the spot for you!

I want to be transparent and say that I volunteer for the clinic. I’m writing a review about the services I received before I was a volunteer. It was easy to find out the information I needed from the website so that I could get a TB test. After calling in I made an appointment very easily and went into the clinic. Everyone was very nice and accommodating and I got results in the time I was supposed to. When I first started volunteering I was happy to learn that the clinic was giving free flu shots this last holiday season. It was a simple process of grabbing a number waiting till I was called and getting my shot. The clinic is an awesome place. I recommend going there is they can offer what you need.

I needed a TB test for my job and all signs were pointing here. I show up just to find out that I should’ve called at 5:00 to enter my name in their lottery of who they will see that day. Then they asked me if I was homeless because they give priority to the homeless before they will assist anyone else. It was such a waste of my time. Plus, who wants to be walking around Berkeley late at night? Such a waste.

Anyone with the capacity to donate money/​time should give to the Berkeley Free Clinic!
It is a beautiful organization set up to help homeless people with their health concerns. People who aren’t insured or without a job can also been seen here.
The way it works is that they open the doors to homeless people at 5:30 pm Monday through Thursday (verify Friday-​Sunday hours on their website). Homeless people are seen first. At 5:45 pm the clinic starts taking calls and walk-​ins for non-​homeless people on a first-​come first-​served basis.
They don’t have doctors or nurses at their facility. The staff who sees clients are volunteer health practitioners. After a health practitioner asks a series of questions to the patient, he/​she will run the diagnosis by a team to confirm proper treatment.
If the patient’s needs go beyond the scope of the clinic, the patient will receive a list of clinics and hospitals in the area.
I have never seen a more caring, non-​judgemental set of volunteer staff!!! They deal with tough patients, some of whom do not have the mental capacity to properly function in life. And the staff does it with such compassion.
It is an eye-​awakening experience to see their operations.
Berkeley Free Clinic is a blessing to our community.

Free AND efficient? It doesn’t get any better.
Went in for a TB test on a Thursday night. Called at exactly 5:45pm when the lines opened but the line was busy. Called again at 6pm and the lady at the front desk jot down my info and told me that I should receive a call back in 45 minutes. At 6:40pm, I got a call back and got scheduled to come in at 7:45pm that night. Came in at 7:45pm, filled out 3 – 4 pages of paperwork (pretty simple — although they do ask for approximate month/​year of particular vaccines/​immunizations). I waited 15 – 20 minutes in the lobby before someone saw me. The guy who did the test for me was super nice and informative — he broke everything down and stressed key points (I believe his name was Yan?) And there was a trainee who was overlooking the procedure and she was also very sweet! The whole TB process took maybe about 15 minutes? And the two made me feel very comfortable and were very personable!
They told me to come back Sunday at 4:30pm. I came exactly at 4:30pm and a staff member gave me a number and told me to take a seat. Less than 5 minutes later, my number was called (talk about quick). She checked my arm quickly, wrote down my results, gave me two copies (you can request for more), and asked me if there was anything else she could do. Very sweet girl — I forgot her name, but I know she’s half Korean!
Overall, I didn’t spend more than 40 – 45 minutes on Thursday and 10 – 15 minutes on Sunday — which is way quicker than any PAID visit I’ve had at a doctor’s office/​hospital.
They also have a donation box located at the front desk. Of course I had to show them my gratitude after my pleasant visit and the awesome service I received — and I highly suggest you do the same if you do choose to come here!

I did a test on Saturday and it went smoothly. However, the girl forgot to mention that I can only pick up the results on a SATURDAY. She said that when the results came in, I could pick it up at the clinic. So, I went there on a weekday and gawd they phone hours listed on the site is NOT THE opening hours. I could not pick up my results because they said that weekdays and weekends have a different system. Therefore, the volunteers do not have access to the Saturday clinic records and I could not get my results. Needless to say, I don’t live in Berkeley so I had to drive 30 min. and try to find parking at Berkeley where you know how Berkeley NEVER has parking. Also, two days before I called the clinic 3 – 4 times about picking my results. Each time I was put on hold and the call was dropped. The guy who was working there also NEVER said I had to pick up my form on a SATURDAY. They also refuse to mail my results to me. I do not have a fax! But what you expect from a volunteer clinic.

The good:
Free, very nice staff, very reassuring and pleasant to talk to, well organized
The bad:
busy, can be up to 3 hour wait time, facilities not pristine, all walks of like are likely to be seen on any given day so be prepared
Went in for STI/​HIV testing. Arrived 15 minuted before the 4pm open. Left the facility at 7. Everyone who helped me was extremely nice and knowledgeable. I left feeling confident with the results I was given, and would go back again if/​when needed. I would arrive earlier next time so as to be closer to the front of the line however. For a free clinic, they provide a good level of service and I was pleasantly surprised with the visit. The only real downside was the long wait time. Bring a book or a well-​charged smart phone.

I don’t write reviews very often, but this place deserves it. I live in LA and was in Berkeley visiting friends when I got a really bad ear infection. My ear was so swollen inside I could only partially hear and felt alot of pressure in my ear. My boyfriend and I walked in to the clinic on Thanksgiving night, just before they were closing. The girl at the front desk said I’d have to come back for a full examination another day but we insisted someone look at my ear. She then introduced us to a lovely woman named Hermon, who looked at my ear right away! No wait! We didnt even sit down in the waiting room! She spent a considerable amount of time with me, taking a good look into my ear…
She was going to give antibiotics, but chose to start me with ear drops first and if they didn’t work, then I should come back in (Which I preferred because I avoid antibiotics!). Unfortunately I live in Los Angeles, and was headed back to LA the next day… fast forward a week later… the ear drops didn’t end up working, as the infection ended up being more serious then we thought. I WISH I could have gone back to Hermon and gotten antibiotics. Unfortunately I had to go to a terrible clinic in LA to get them, sit through 3 hours of a waiting, 60 seconds with a mean doctor. If only I lived in Berkeley…
To add, I called Hermon on a Saturday to ask some questions and she called me back IMMEDIATELY with answers. ALSO, she called me a week after I spoke with her to follow up on how my ear was doing. I have NEVER had such a caring, personable experience with a clinic/​doctor/​nurse in my life! And I have been to some fancy Beverly Hills doctors (when I used to have health insurance) that would rush through visits and never follow up. If you go here, definitely see HERMON! She’s the BEST!!!

Honestly the BEST, most ORGANIZED experience I’ve had from a clinic or hospital. I went in for Mens Sunday STD testing. I got there about 3:30pm, 30 minutes before they opened and there was already a line forming, but I was close to the front. So GET THERE EARLY, and you’ll be out of there sooner, like any other free clinic or public office.
The staff were all exceptionally friendly and knowledgable. The waiting room was chill, they were constantly playing a movie which was cool. I would have been in/​out with test results after about an hour, but I also got tested for HIV which took a little more time, but I was still out of there within 2 hours. They do a quick counseling session before/​after your HIV test too which was nice (Also they girl who was my counselor was super cute and friendly, which made it that much more pleasant. I think her name was Hayley, gorgeous chick, as were all the other ladies there). All my tests came back negative so I guess that made the experience pretty awesome too. Highly recommend this place, also make a donation because they are doing an awesome job, and they’re all working for free.

they tested me for all the major stds and got my results to me within a week or two.
it was completely free.
the wait was very long. (apx. 90 minutes).
i would go back.

Such caring people volunteer here! They have a great energy with each other but their work ethic and knowledge is just TOP NOTCH.
FYI they play movies on a flat screen so if you don’t have headphones or a book, you can just hang out and watch a flick of the staff’s choosing (Sicko and a film about coming out in developing countries played while I was there)
I only arrived 15 minutes before opening and was there a total of 4 hours (this was on the Sunday drop in day for men). Wasn’t expecting that, but that’s the kind of demand the place is in. Next time I go i’ll just show up an hour early and be person number 1, 2 or 3 and get in and out quicker.
I have health insurance but would rather come here and donate just because the atmosphere is much more welcoming (plus it’s a pain to have to go see my doctor, pay a co-​pay, then go to another location for the blood work).

This is a great resource, and I’m really happy that there are some options that allow our community to have some access to health services. I went here a few months ago when I didn’t have a job, & when I suspected that I might have strep throat. They were able to test me and provide antibiotics within an hour. The volunteers were very helpful and made follow up phone calls to make sure that I was improving.
Thank you staff!

these saints got me the antibiotics i needed to get through the awful case of strep throat i had and back on the streets where i belong, drinking myself into comas and eating awful food and reviewing the experiences for everyone’s benefit. THANKS BERKELEY FREE CLINIC!

This is the best clinic to go to. The staff were caring, friendly, and responsive. I highly recommend you go here first before going to another clinic. They have a number of services.
Free hot tea — It really helped calm me down and warm me up, I had three cups. I was thirsty.
They run completely on donations and all the staff are volunteers, I believe. So please donate if you can!

I have passed by this place so many times while walking from the BART to the dorms freshman year or to the house in years after. What I cannot believe is how professional and confidential these people are. When I found out that they were just trained laypeople I was certainly amazed.
Recently, I had injured my wrist while working out with the punching bag. I didn’t know what exactly was up with my wrist. I called them to schedule an appointment and while it was a bit annoying because I kept getting a busy signal, they were definitely helpful and apologetic about having to wait on hold once I had made it in over the phone. I briefly told the guy about my problems and he said that unfortunately they would probably have to do an x-​ray to figure out what’s wrong and they didn’t have the technology. He took my number down and called me in half an hour giving me a list of places where I could get it checked for a really low cost.
Amazing!

My rating might be biased because I am a volunteer in the IRC (information resource collective) aka front desk… but looking at the previous reviews of the Berkeley Free Clinic, I sense that I am not the only one who feels this way.
Here is a quick summary of my review before I even give you the details: The BERKELEY FREE CLINIC is AWESOME FANTASTIC AND DESERVES MORE CREDIT THAN ANY ONE PERSON CAN ATTRIBUTE… because:
1. EVERYONE on staff is a «health worker VOLUNTEER»…meaning they are dedicating their time, passion, care to serve the communities of the Bay Area and beyond!
2. Cooperative community atmosphere… everything at the Berkeley Free Clinic has been voted on, discussed, amended, and constructively put in place to cater to serve our customer’s needs.
3. confidential HIV/​AIDS testing. EXCELLENT medics on staff who treat everyone with dignity and respect
4. Free hot tea (green, black, peppermint… ect.) and CONDOMS (lubricated, non-​lubricated, flavored)!!
5. EXCELLENT referrals to other low cost/​free/​sliding scale hospitals/​clinics (if your condition is something that the Berkeley Free Clinic can’t treat)
6. FRIENDLY and OPEN MINDED volunteers who care
7. Accessible by ALL (students, homeless, uninsured, low income)
8. Clean waiting room and restroom
9. DENTAL clinic with life-​long membership (based on a lottery system)
…Basically I could go on for a while… but I will save you the reading and tell you to COME VISIT US when you are in the area! Stop by and pick up some free condoms, or come and ask us about our services!

To be honest I was scared of going here. I was convinced I would be seated for an hour and a half next to reeking, hacking, tubercular homeless people, hippies and/​or screaming immigrant infants, but the waiting room was quiet, tidy and orderly, and my name was called in about ten minutes. Wow.
I was examined by cool, caring health care worker Jonathan, who helped diagnose my itchy fungal condition and prescribed and gave (!) me the prescribed Clotrimazole athlete’s foot cream.
The last thing I wanted to do is take advantage of this place. I want to pay something and pay for the product. I had donated $ 20.00 before even being seen, so according to Jonathan this «more than covered» the visit and the ointment. I certainly hope so — this place seems like a vital, necessary, well-​run community resource and (hopefully) painless alternative to giving $ 100 to a private practitioner for what would probably be the exact same result save a more luxurious waiting room with glossy magazines about how people that have more money than you spend it.
Makes me want to be a Marxist.
Note: reading the other reviews, I guess these people are volunteers? Wow. That’s even more amazing. Six stars, no burritos.