The Mission of Volunteers in Medicine (VIM) promotes and guides the development of a national network of free clinics, emphasizing the use of retired medical and lay volunteers to care for the "working uninsured" within a culture of caring so that everyone in a community has access to health care.

The building has been designed as a prototype for San Diego County with the El Cajon site envisioned as the first of ten. The idea of a culture of caring extends from the building's program to the building itself. The owner and design team elected to follow the USGBC's LEED rating system as both a design tool and a quality control measure. On a community-wide basis, we have connected to alternate forms of transit, lessened our expected heat island effect, conserved water and energy, limited our construction waste output and raw material consumption.

On a smaller building scale, we have made every effort to create a healthy place to work and receive services. Most importantly we've acted to limit the amount of chemicals off-gassing into the space as well as increasing the amount of daylight and fresh air.