About Us
Serving the Bay Area for more than 45 years
LifeLong has come a long way in 45 years. A lot has changed since 1976. But one thing has consistently stayed the same, meeting the needs of our patients in the community.
Mission
LifeLong Medical Care provides high-quality health, dental, and social services to underserved people of all ages; creates models of care for the elderly, people with disabilities and families; and advocates for continuous improvements in the health of our communities.
Core Values
- We respect each person and celebrate the rich diversity of our communities.
- We believe all people are entitled to quality health care that serves the whole person.
- We are dedicated to recruiting, training, and supporting a diverse, compassionate, and skilled staff.
- We are committed to eliminating health disparities.
- We maximize our impact on the health of our community through local, state and national partnerships.
- We continuously seek to hear our patients' voice as we assess, develop and improve our programs.
History
Where We Started
LifeLong Medical Care’s story began more than 45 years ago with the unwavering belief that continues to guide the organization—that all people have the right to receive the healthcare and support they need. The year was 1976, in Berkeley, California, where the senior population faced a growing, unmet need for health services. Enter a small group of Gray Panthers, whose members created an innovative solution—a milestone in elder care—the Over 60 Health Center.
LifeLong Today
Our first health center located in a storefront on San Pablo Avenue in Berkeley has evolved to become LifeLong Medical Care, a dynamic nonprofit community organization. LifeLong provides medical, dental, behavioral health and social services in Alameda and Contra Costa Counties. Each year, we deliver quality health and wellness services to 50,000+ patients each year, many with complex health conditions. We serve all, regardless of ability to pay, housing situation or immigration status. We do this through 14 primary health centers, several of which also offer urgent and dental care. We're out in the community with two mobile dental centers and five street medicine vans. We also providesupportive housing, medical respite, and school-based health services.
Spreading Our Mission
LifeLong Medical Care has earned widespread national recognition for creative approaches to community health challenges, including the needs of the low-income elderly, people with disabilities, and high-risk pregnant women. Other health centers look to LifeLong’s models as they develop their services for these patients. We continuously advocate for public policy improvements related to improved access to care, reduction of health disparities, and expanded home- and community- based care.
Diversity
Diversity is Important to Us And Patients We Serve
Embracing diversity at LifeLong Medical Care means understanding, respecting, and valuing people's differences, visible or invisible, including but not limited to race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, and age.
Recognizing and applying diversity of perspectives, skills, and talents engages our employees and patients, which strengthens our decision-making. Ensuring that diversity is sought, valued, and respected is critical to our organization’s success and is a core expectation for LifeLong leaders.
Our commitment to diversity empowers us to generate unique insights and ideas, create solutions, and deliver innovation to improve outcomes for individual patients. We invest in and nurture relationships with diverse groups of partners, advocates, suppliers, and community organizations that help us better serve those patients. These relationships extend our efforts to reduce health disparities and to address the unique needs of our communities.
At LifeLong, we are proud of our diversity and the essential role it plays in helping us accomplish our mission.
