logo
    • Magazine
    • Membership
    • Donate
  • Racial Justice
  • Economic Justice
    • Collections
    • Glossary
  • Climate Justice
  • Health Justice
  • Leadership
  • CONTENT TYPES
  • Subscribe
  • Webinars
    • Upcoming Webinars
    • Complimentary Webinars
    • Premium On-Demand Webinars
  • Membership
  • Submissions

Berkeley Clinic Vacates Site and Leaves Patient Files Behind

Ruth McCambridge
February 20, 2015
Share
Tweet
Share
Email
Print

 

patient confidentials

February 18, 2015; East Bay Express

Sometimes, there are stories that repeat themselves across the country, giving us all a sense that a particular nonprofit field is under a lot of strain and flux. In this case, sadly, we are tracking on health clinics that close in disarray, at times leaving staff without their last paychecks, patients without transitions to ongoing care, and both without needed information. (See here and here for a few recent examples.) In some cases, a certain level of denial appears likely—a will to go forward despite all indicators that this may not be an option.

Even under these stressful conditions, there are standards of practice that should never be breached, and when vulnerable patients are concerned, the stakes are very high. I wrote last week about the Berkeley Health Center for Women and Men, which was ordered shut in January by U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge William Lafferty after he had terminated the lease based on the parent organization’s ongoing inability to pay the rent. That parent is the Bay Area Consortium for Quality Health Care. After the group refused either to act on the order or to avail themselves of the services of an ombudsman who would have represented the interests of the patients, the judge, after taking executive director Gwen Rowe-Lee Sykes to task for neglecting to plan, finally this week sent federal marshals to evict the group as of Wednesday. In all of this, it appears at least from this report that no one was communicating with the patients of the clinic about what was occurring and reasonable precautions in the best interests of those patients may not have been taken.

Sign up for our free newsletters

Subscribe to NPQ's newsletters to have our top stories delivered directly to your inbox.

By signing up, you agree to our privacy policy and terms of use, and to receive messages from NPQ and our partners.

Sam Levin, who has been covering the story for the East Bay Express, reported that a visit he made to the site after the eviction found no members of the organization present—he was let in by a representative of the landlord—but what was there were shelves and boxes full of confidential patient files..

Levin was told, he says, by the landlord’s representative that at least eight patients showed up for appointments, having not been informed of the closure. (There was even a note on the door explaining that the offices would be closed on President’s Day.) Levin reports that the landlord’s representative said one man came all the way from Contra Costa County because he could not contact anyone and was worried that he would be charged the standard $40 fee for a missed session. A few “externs” showed up, as well.

A message on the clinic’s phone, which this NPQ reporter checked again on Thursday evening, is a calm recitation of regular hours and location with no mention of the shuttering. Patients who try to call to cancel an appointment are met with a full voice mailbox. The organization’s website similarly has no mention of the closure.

Dr. Deborah Wafer, who had identified herself to the court as the “medical director” for Berkeley Health Center, told Levin Wednesday morning that she was now “volunteering” for the Bay Area Consortium for Quality Health Care and that the organization was making arrangements to transfer the medical records from the Ellsworth site. She says the group has intentions to continue the practice. The organization does have 15 more days to remove their belongings, but Levin noted that other things had been moved but not the records. The landlord’s representative informed Levin that they had not yet heard from anyone about the records.

Sykes is refusing comment and referring calls to board members and attorneys.—Ruth McCambridge

Share
Tweet
Share
Email
Print
About the author
Ruth McCambridge

Ruth is Editor Emerita of the Nonprofit Quarterly. Her background includes forty-five years of experience in nonprofits, primarily in organizations that mix grassroots community work with policy change. Beginning in the mid-1980s, Ruth spent a decade at the Boston Foundation, developing and implementing capacity building programs and advocating for grantmaking attention to constituent involvement.

More about: AccountabilityHealth EquityNonprofit NewsPolicy

Become a member

Support independent journalism and knowledge creation for civil society. Become a member of Nonprofit Quarterly.

Members receive unlimited access to our archived and upcoming digital content. NPQ is the leading journal in the nonprofit sector written by social change experts. Gain access to our exclusive library of online courses led by thought leaders and educators providing contextualized information to help nonprofit practitioners make sense of changing conditions and improve infra-structure in their organizations.

Join Today
logo logo logo logo logo
See comments

summer_sidebar_subscribe
You might also like
What Can a COVID Outbreak at a Writing Conference Teach Us about Community Care?
Alison Stine
The Promise and Problems of Self-Driving Cars for the Disabled Community
Alison Stine
The Pedestrian Safety Crisis in America
Isaiah Thompson
Why Do Wheelchair Repairs Take So Long?
Alison Stine
Addressing Maternity Care Deserts: A Conversation with Dr. Elizabeth Cherot
Alison Stine
How the Climate Crisis is Changing Mental Healthcare
Ananya Pathak

NPQ Webinars

Oct 5th and 6th, 2:00 PM ET

Mastering QuickBooks 2023

Advanced QuickBooks for Nonprofits for Online Users

Register Now
Oct 26th, 2:00 PM ET

Becoming A Great Manager

How to Conspire and Align with the People You Lead

Register Now
You might also like
A stylized illustration of many people standing together, with lines and nodes connecting them.
What Can a COVID Outbreak at a Writing Conference Teach Us...
Alison Stine
An asian man with locs pushes an elderly man in a wheelchair. They are in front of a red car.
The Promise and Problems of Self-Driving Cars for the...
Alison Stine
Bird’s eye view of people crossing a crosswalk painted with yellow and black designs. The word, “LOOK” is painted onto the ground.
The Pedestrian Safety Crisis in America
Isaiah Thompson

Like what you see?

Subscribe to the NPQ newsletter to have our top stories delivered directly to your inbox.

See our newsletters

By signing up, you agree to our privacy policy and terms of use, and to receive messages from NPQ and our partners.

Summer 2023 issue

Independent & in your mailbox.

Subscribe today and get a full year of NPQ for just $59.

subscribe
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Careers
  • Contact
  • Copyright
  • Funders
  • Magazine Art

We are using cookies to give you the best experience on our website.

 

Non Profit News | Nonprofit Quarterly
Powered by  GDPR Cookie Compliance
Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.

Strictly Necessary Cookies

Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings.

If you disable this cookie, we will not be able to save your preferences. This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again.