Post-war Lebanon has witnessed a noticeable divide in socioeconomic status across the country. A simple short drive around Beirut and one may witness posh neighbourhoods where the brand names of Italy and France prosper and within minutes see areas with homes made of scratch metal.

Determined to do what little they could to provide good health care to those who could not afford it, a group of medical students and young doctors from a number of universities got together back in the fall of 2001. Inspired by the poor economic status of patients who couldn't even afford to visit the Out-Patient Department (OPD) of the American University of Beirut-Medical Center (AUB-MC) which is already of reduced cost, they decided that something had to be done and the Volunteer Outreach Clinic (VOC) was born.

An agreement was made with the Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) so that the students and doctors could use a small space on the second floor of an office the organization had in the Palestinian refugee camp of Shatila, one of the most impoverished areas of Beirut.

Every Saturday morning, the small quarters provided begin to fill as people begin to arrive. Patients stand or sit crowded shoulder-to-shoulder as they await their turn. By the 3:00pm closing hours, all patients have been seen. Medications are prescribed, instructions are given, and referrals written. Possibly most importantly, the volunteers provide psychological support and advice.

Charbel Salem, a medical student at AUB who is a regular volunteer at the VOC explained, "There are limits of course to how much help we can provide considering the resources available. What we can always do, however, is give endless psychological support and this is of utmost importance to these people whose living conditions are just so terrible."

New patients at the VOC pay LL 3,000 (Around two US dollars) which goes to the PRCS. Patients visiting the VOC are not all Palestinians but also include Lebanese, Syrians, and Egyptians living in various parts of Lebanon. All the patients share one thing though, the status of underprivileged members of Lebanese society.

Volunteers include attending physicians, residents, interns, medical students as well as non-medical staff. A number of drug companies also donate medications. Laboratory tests are often limited to those which are essential and are provided at cost by Fontana Laboratories, which is run by a former AUB Medicine graduate. The VOC also helps in providing refunds for certain specialist referrals and testing.

Francesca Selmo, a third year medical student at AUB of Italian origin, first started to volunteer at the VOC in her first year of medicine. She enthusiastically explained, "It is really a wonderful initiative and truly inspiring work. With all the good that comes from the VOC though, it is often frustrating since we see first-hand how bad the situation is in these really poor areas and a sense of hopelessness can arise."

The VOC aims to offer primary health care services to the underprivileged and to allow doctors the opportunity to interact with their community by encouraging volunteer community work. An additional aim is to give medical students exposure to the variety of cases seen in primary health care centers, particularly in a poorer setting.

In terms of financial support, the VOC relies on the good will and financial help of contributors. The project startup was aided by a $10,000 donation from the AUB University Student Faculty Committee (USFC) in 2001. This was followed by $5,000 on a yearly basis afterwards.

Other sources of funding include a variety of fundraisers held by the VOC members and volunteers themselves each year such as an annual dinner and a musical evening.

The VOC holds an annual reception where a presentation is made and a call for volunteers is extended. Volunteers share their often dramatic experiences with the crowd and explain how they have been affected by the VOC.

Today, the VOC has witnessed its growth and maturation from a haphazard start-up to a clinic which has a patient filing system and a regular organized volunteering system which treats from 30 to 100 patients per day. The VOC initiative proudly claims having extended services to more than 2,000 patients since its inauguration.

On a closing note, one of the founders of the VOC, Zeina Abdallah a staff secretary at AUB explained, "The VOC allows a way for people who cannot pay for a visit to a doctor to get quality care and we really hope and believe that the initiative is making a difference. In addition to this, the VOC allows volunteers from various universities and specialties to come together and meet for this noble cause. Zeina currently functions as the treasurer of the VOC as well as overlooks such tasks as volunteer organization and information systems at the VOC.

Mohamad Elfakhani (Lebanon) American University of Beirut, Beirut mxe00@aub.edu.lb