Harm Reduction Conference

Joan Viteri Memorial Clinic is a student-run, non-profit free clinic based in Sacramento, California and operated by students of the University of California, Davis. Their mission is to provide access to high-quality and inclusive healthcare for LGBTQIA+, sex worker, drug user, and unhoused communities. Harm reduction is central to the clinic's work; harm reduction is a patient-centered and non-judgmental approach to care that prioritizes autonomy and safety. Rather than seeking to eliminate behaviors, harm reduction focuses on minimizing preventable harm through education, compassionate care, and access to essential resources.

 

The clinic's services include primary care for chronic and acute diseases, wound care, reproductive health procedures, and STI prevention, treatment, and education. In addition, JVMC partners with Stockton Harm Reduction Program, which provides basic needs resources to unhoused communities in Stockton, California, and Gender Health Clinic, which offers free gender-affirming care. 

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Each year, Joan Viteri Memorial Clinic hosts a harm reduction conference for students and healthcare staff to  build knowledge and awareness around harm reduction principles, practices, and characteristics. Events like this are critical in addressing systemic barriers to care and equipping future providers with tools to serve marginalized communities effectively. In 2026, the Aasha Foundation partnered with JVMC to expand outreach and increase community access to the conference. With this support, the conference was held in a larger venue and featured additional keynote speakers, hands-on workshops centered around harm reduction in drug use and emergency care, and educational stations addressing a wide range of health conditions and services.

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This year’s conference reached over 90 students, healthcare providers, and community members and created a collaborative space for education and conversation. Attendees engaged in trainings and discussions on naloxone administration, safer injection practices, socioeconomic barriers to accessing care, social and legal limitations to gender-affirming care, and modes of reducing stigma in clinical settings for marginalized communities. Each session emphasized practical, community-centered strategies for improving health outcomes and strengthening trust with underserved populations.

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The Aasha Foundation is extremely honored to support this conference and its impact on community education and public health awareness. We would like to acknowledge Brandon Greenleaf and Christine Franklin, the co-directors of JVMC for the 2025-2026 academic year, for their leadership and continued support for the Aasha Foundation’s mission to advance public health through education and outreach. We are so grateful to the 2025-2026 Harm Reduction Committee, lead by Ilana Schloss with members Jackie Wong and Sadhana Vijayanand, for organizing such an important and informative event. Thank you to all the speakers who shared their expertise and perspectives; each presentation highlighted the importance of fostering meaningful community connections and improving care for underserved populations through the implementation of harm reduction.

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