Lestonnac Free Clinic Asks Physicians to Help Clear Specialty Wait Lists

For people who have medical, dental, or vision issues and nowhere else to go, Lestonnac Free Clinic (LFC) is often the last stop. The free, all-volunteer clinic, founded in Orange in 1979, now sees patients across a network of sites. Its line is getting longer.

"We have a noble mission of being the safety for the safety net. There will be an increasing need for LFC as more people lose coverage and we want to prepare for this by recruiting more doctors," states Marc Klau, MD, President of the LFC Board since January 2026. 

About 13 years ago, Dr. Klau began volunteering for one half-day once a month as an ENT-HNS surgeon. "I was super busy in my practice and administrative roles but saw the need to personally give back to our community," he adds.

Executive Director Stephen Peters confirms the census has been increasing in recent months. Medi-Cal and Medicare rules have shifted, some patients have lost coverage, and reimbursements and clinic budgets elsewhere have tightened. Community clinics that can see only a limited number of uninsured patients are increasingly sending them to donor-funded LFC.

Lestonnac offers care in 23 specialties and, in 2025, opened a surgery center in Orange. Every specialty has a wait list. Surgeons are especially needed. The center is already doing colonoscopies, endoscopies, and hernia repairs. In the coming months, leaders want to add OB/Gyn and begin cataract surgeries.

Orange remains the busiest site and the original clinic, at 1215 E. Chapman Ave. Care is also offered in Los Alamitos, Fullerton, Norwalk and Los Angeles, with additional clinics in the Inland Empire. Wait times are rising across the network. 

Peters assures that the clinic builds the schedule around the doctor, not the other way around: “We are ‘doctor first,’ so however much time you have, morning or afternoon, we will schedule around your preference," he says. "A specialist who can give one morning or afternoon a month can make a big difference. Patients can be scheduled into that block and return to the same physician for follow-up. The clinic does not set a required patient volume or appointment length. Physicians say how many people they can see and how much time they want for each visit.”

Volunteer physicians are covered by malpractice insurance the clinic has purchased, with $3 million in coverage that Peters said follows the physician after the volunteer work ends and into retirement. The application is not complicated. Physicians are invited to tour the clinic and meet the staff.

Lestonnac Medical Director Paul Mansonhing, MD, a SJO medical staff member since completing his residency in 1992, states, "In my 32-plus year volunteer experience with the clinic, it has been an honor and privilege to serve as a medical provider, Board member and Medical Director. I have held dearly to the legacy of St. Joseph Hospital, namely Compassion, Dignity, Justice, Excellence and Integrity and continue to be guided by them in my private practice."

Physicians who want to volunteer can start from the link on the clinic’s website at lestonnacfreeclinic.org/volunteer-provider or email Peters at speters@lestonnacfreeclinic.org for tours and meet-and-greets.