Palo Alto Medical Foundation

The Palo Alto Medical Foundation (PAMF) is a nonprofit healthcare organization based in Palo Alto, California, USA. It operates medical offices in over 15 cities in the Bay Area and has more than 900 physicians. In 2008, PAMF had over 2 million patient visits.

The history of PAMF dates back to 1930 when Dr. Russel Van Arsdale Lee founded the Palo Alto Medical Clinic (PAMC). Over the years, several physicians joined the clinic, including notable figures such as Blake C. Wilbur and Esther Clark, one of the first female physicians in the country. In 1946, PAMC agreed to provide medical care to Stanford University students in exchange for a flat fee, even before health plans were common. In 1950, PAMC became one of the first facilities in the nation to offer radiation therapy for cancer patients on an outpatient basis.

In 1981, the for-profit physician group PAMC established the nonprofit PAMF to oversee its operations and assets. PAMF became an affiliate of Sutter Health, a nonprofit organization with hospitals and medical groups in Northern California, in 1993. PAMF was an early adopter of electronic health record systems in 1999. In 2008, PAMF's three medical groups merged to form a single medical group called Palo Alto Foundation Medical Group (PAFMG).

For more information, visit the PAMF website.