- The nation’s first free-of-charge integrative medicine clinic.
Overview
Venice Family Clinic (VFC) sees 40,000 patients annually, and has devoted decades to providing compassionate, quality health care to underserved individuals and families in Los Angeles. In 2005, the Foundation partnered with VFC to create the Simms/Mann Health and Wellness Center—the nation’s first integrative medicine program to be offered at a free clinic.
The Center offers evidence-based integrated services that address the whole person. In addition to high-quality conventional medical care, the Center’s services include:
- Disease management, prevention, and wellness programs
- Mental health services
- Chronic pain treatment and management
- Nutritional education
- Exercise classes
- Stress management
- Obesity prevention and management
- Multimodal approaches to chronic disease, including mind-body therapies, acupuncture, and chiropractic and osteopathic care
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Desired Impact
By establishing the Center, the Foundation aspired to help VFC make an even greater impact by adding a holistic health, wellness, and integrative medicine approach to the excellent services VFC was already providing to their underserved patients.
VFC’s integrative medicine program has permeated the care model at VFC and is internationally recognized as a rigorous, evidence-based model of integrative health care, improving the quality of life for dozens of people in need every day based on its whole-person approach. For example, any patient struggling with mental health concerns or addiction is connected to a therapist in the same visit; in-house health educators are available full-time; and the chronic pain clinic offers naturopathic healing techniques like chiropractic and acupuncture.
