OCCUPY MEDICAL (OM)

Occupy Medical got it’s start with the Occupy Eugene movement in October 2011 as a 1st aid tent. They saw that the need for healthcare that respected all citizens was sorely needed in their community so they set up a free, weekly holistic care street reach clinic. They are now a 501c3 organization that serves between 150-200 patients every month no matter what the weather offers them. They have approximately 40 volunteers that serve the community doing everything from making sandwiches to collecting socks for donation to writing prescriptions.  Even a free hair cut at the Gorilla Hair Salon is part of the services you can receive at the Occupy Medical weekly clinic.  The staff trains students from premed, nursing, and journalism programs. In inclement weather, Occupy Medical sends out a team (consisting of a doctor, treatment member and mental health professional) to check on unhoused citizens. They offer free care in the single payer model as an example of what universal healthcare looks like in practice. Occupy Medical firmly believes in healthcare for all.

Occupy Medical is a group of dedicated health care professionals and support personnel who believe healthcare is a basic human right that must be made accessible to everyone, regardless of ability to pay. Since the first Occupy Eugene encampment, Occupy Medical has evolved from a loosely knit association of volunteers providing first aid in the camps into a cohesive team of primary care practitioners delivering no cost, high quality medical services to the Eugene-Springfield community at large.

Occupy Medical’s current goal is to continue directly addressing the need for access to medical care by offering free medical clinics to all in need throughout Lane County, and hopefully, beyond. They have concluded that the most effective means to reach those who need our services is to create a mobile medical clinic that provides primary care in the towns and cities where the need exists, at a convenient time, and manner appropriate for the populations served.

Photos by Jana Thrift
Photos by David Geitgey Sierralupe
Photos by Karen Moore
Photos by Robert Long

Audio Interview with Sue Sierralupe (Clinic Manager) – by Jason Lieberman

Photos and Videos Listed by Subject & Date:

Sue Sierralupe on Occupy Medical – Edited Video by Nick DeAngelo

Frostbite Cripples Eugene – Edited Video by Jana Thrift

Dale Hardway on Occupy Medical Bus at Opportunity Village Eugene (OVE)

Occupy TV – Episode #9 – Occupy Medical

Occupy Medical – In the Beginning

Occupy Medical – Washington Jefferson Park

Occupy Medical – The Old Federal Building

Occupy Medical – Eugene Park Blocks

Gorilla Hair Salon

Occupy Medical – Dental Clinic

Occupy Medical – The Bus

Occupy Medical – Receives Award from the City of Eugene