About Us
Mission Statement
Refugee Health Alliance (RHA) was organized in 2018 in response to increasing medical and social needs at the US-Mexico Border.
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Patients receiving care have been made vulnerable and marginalized. They are families, children, pregnant women, LGBTQ and houseless individuals. They have been displaced, deported from the US, and politically and socially excluded. They are refugees and asylum seekers fleeing structural and non-structural violence.
Our main aims are to:
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Create sustainable systems of services that do not harm or perpetuate inequities
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Empower affected individuals to advocate for their own medical and legal rights and build on their own strengths and resources.
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Connect individuals and families to resources, including:
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Substance use disorder treatment
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HIV care
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TB diagnosis and medical care
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Legal services
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Mental health resources
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Dental health resources
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Provide multi-level, integrated services to meet the whole person and all people without any discrimination, including:
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Mental health services
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Hygiene including showers, bathrooms, and laundry services
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Potable water including public water fountains
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Natural medicine
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Medical-legal services and documentation
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Hot meals and also needed pantry items for shelters
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Clean clothing
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Collaborate with relevant local community organizations to address the social determinants of health, including, but not limited to: Economic disparities, Homelessness, Food insecurity, Legal barriers, Structural violence, Human rights, Education, Gender Identity, Race/Ethnicity
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Mobilize a dynamic network of volunteers, interprofessional clinicians, undergraduate/graduate students, and advocates from Mexico to promote the wellbeing of under-resourced populations.
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Challenge the border itself as the physical and metaphorical source of healthcare injustice and the systems of oppression that create and sustain it.
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Promote ongoing discussion of the public health and human rights implications of such a large population of displaced individuals/families through research, advocacy, and educational initiatives, challenge white supremacy and anti-racist.
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Develop Capacity among providers, students, and migrants on both sides of the border by providing training, supervision, and consultation
Vision Statement
To provide ethical, holistic, integrated, trauma-informed, and culturally-inclusive care and advocate for all displaced and populations made vulnerable along the US-Mexico border in collaboration with activists and existing healthcare organizations. We are working toward a world in which every individual has the right to stay, the right to move, and the right to return in the pursuit of health and wellness.
The Refugee Health Alliance (RHA) was formed in 2018 in response to increasing medical need at the US-Mexico Border.
Our Clinic
Prevencasa -
Refugee Health Alliance had previously supported a clinic at an autonomous community space called Enclave Caracol where asylum seekers also could come to receive free meals and legal support. In 9/2019 we transitioned our “Weekday Clinic” to Prevencasa, a well established harm reduction clinic in Zona Norte that has been working for years with vulnerable patient populations. This clinic is open from Monday to Friday from 9am to 2pm and is typically staffed by 2-5 volunteers. The clinic treats approximately 10-30 patients each day and has access to basic labs, imaging, and specialty referrals. If necessary, we also subsidize the hospitalization of critically ill migrants. Since our inception in November 2018, we have completed approximately 7,000 patient consultations and we have become the largest charity healthcare provider to the migrants and the shelters in Tijuana, with the exception of the Mexican government.
Our focus is not exclusive to medical treatment. We also provide mental health services in the form of psychological consultations and group support to vulnerable subsets of the population including unaccompanied minors and LGBT members. We also host recreational therapy sessions, which have included activities like art and yoga to promote psychological and physical well being. Lastly, we work with closely with lawyers to produce documentation for migrants in preparation for their asylum process.
Mobile Shelter Outreach -
Every Saturday, at overcrowded shelters throughout Tijuana, we host mobile clinics for those who are unable to travel to Prevencasa. Clinical teams of 15 -35 physicians, nurses, EMTs and other medical volunteers typically see between 80-160 patients every Saturday. Higher acuity are then referred to local hospitals or for follow up at our clinic in Prevencasa.