REMOTE AREA MEDICAL – RAM®: Bringing Free Healthcare to Those in Need

Founded in 1985 by Stan Brock, Remote Area Medical – RAM® is a major nonprofit organization whose mission is to prevent pain and alleviate suffering by providing free, quality healthcare to those in need. To accomplish this, RAM operates pop-up clinics delivering free, quality dental, vision and medical services to underserved, uninsured and underinsured individuals who do not have access to, or cannot afford, a doctor. Fact sheet can be found here.

RAM was initially founded to serve as a provider of free medical care in remote areas of developing countries, such as Guyana, Mexico and Haiti. Almost immediately after beginning operations, RAM began receiving requests to operate clinics in the United States. This ultimately led to the operation of the first American RAM clinic on May 9, 1992 in Sneedville, Tenn. Today, all RAM operations are domestic.

In order to treat as many people as possible, RAM recruits volunteers for the operation of its pop-up clinics. RAM volunteers include licensed nurses, physician assistants, doctors, dentists, dental hygienists, optometrists, ophthalmologists, opticians and pre-professional students, as well as general support volunteers. Since 1985, more than 212,000 RAM volunteers have treated more than 950,000 individuals, delivering more than $200 million worth of free healthcare services.

Innovative Telehealth Services

In 2020, RAM launched an innovative, free Telehealth Program to continue breaking down barriers to care. This new program connects volunteer healthcare practitioners with patients seeking health services through free online appointments. Since 2020, RAM has provided more than $65,000 worth of free telehealth care.

Remote Area Medical’s Mobile Telehealth Access Unit — which held its first clinic in April 2023 — brings doctors closer to patients that need care most. The truck — outfitted with two medical exam rooms and Starlink Internet service — can help individuals access healthcare that otherwise wouldn’t be feasible.

RAM Telehealth now has a three-pronged approach to reaching patients:

1. Individuals can log in to telehealth appointments via an internet-capable device on clinic days
2. Patients can visit in-person events at facilities such as Knox Area Rescue Ministries (KARM)
3. Patients can visit the Mobile Telehealth Access Station when it’s deployed across the state of Tennessee

Disaster Response

RAM has a long history of operating in austere and dynamic environments:

• In 2019, RAM held a dental clinic in Nassau, Bahamas in response to Hurricane Dorian, delivering more than $220,000 in free care
• RAM held a free dental, vision and medical clinic in Lake Charles, La., in November 2020, delivering care to hundreds of individuals in a community reeling from the impact of two devastating hurricanes
• In 2022, Remote Area Medical held a vision clinic in Bowling Green, Ky. and a vision and medical clinic in Mayfield, Ky. following a historic tornado outbreak. Over the span of those two clinics, RAM served 351 individuals with $95,140 worth of free care

Support and Recognition

Remote Area Medical relies on the generosity of donors and corporate sponsors. RAM does not accept government funds. RAM is nationally recognized and receives significant media attention. RAM and its work has been featured on the front page of The Washington Post, CBS Sunday Morning, Fox News, The New York Times, The Today Show, Matter of Fact and CNN. RAM partners with leading non-profit, for-profit and government agencies.