UCSF Health and Human Rights Initiative's Human Rights Collaborative (HRC) is founded on the ideals of compassion, fairness, and respect for human rights.
The UCSF clinicians who form the HRC provide forensic documentation of the physical and psychological manifestations of torture and ill-treatment experienced by individuals applying for asylum or other forms of humanitarian protection in the United States.
Our clinic model
The HRC partners with local and national service organizations and law offices to provide forensic evaluations either in-person during one of our monthly clinics, or virtually. The type of evaluation we conduct depends on the expertise of the respective clinician involved and the relative needs of the client.
At this time, our capacity is approximately five clients per month. We conduct either psychological or physical evaluation, or a combination of the two. Cases are accepted and assigned dates based on a first come, first served principle, as well as with the recognition of urgent upcoming court dates.
Learn more about the impact of forensic medical evaluations on the lives of our clients from the data in our Impact Report or in this editorial in UCSF Magazine, "The Body Tells The Story"(2021).
Submit a Referral
Attorneys may refer a client (we welcome both children and adults) for a medical and/or psychological forensic medical evaluation for your client's humanitarian protection claim.
Volunteer Inquiries
If you are interested in becoming a trained forensic evaluator in UCSF HHRI's pediatric or adult Human Rights Clinic, please complete this form and our Human Rights Clinic Coordinators will contact you shortly with more information:
I can’t express (in writing, at least) how grateful I am for your extraordinarily thoughtful and detailed draft. The client and I reflected on Tuesday about her experience with you all. She felt seen, heard, supported, and empowered by your grounding, empathetic, and trauma-informed wisdom and care. She sang your and your team’s praises, and even shared she left the clinic site feeling content. Thank you.
Attorney
Monthly clinics are held virtually or in person at the UCSF San Francisco Laurel Heights Village Campus and the UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital International Clinic in Oakland, CA.
UCSF Pediatric Human Rights Collaborative-East Bay, L-R (top): Zarin Noor, MD; Naomi A. Schapiro, RN, PhD, CPNP-PC; Raul Gutierrez, MD; Martha Rea, LCSW;Patty Mundera, LCSW; Lisa Fortuna, PsyD; Arthur Lande, MD; Peggy O’Grady, LCSW
L-R (bottom): Lourdes Juarez, CPNP; Arielle Balbus, PsyD
