Biography
Dr. Richard Fine was born June 6, 1940 in Cincinatti, Ohio. He received his undergraduate and medical degrees from Cornell University. After graduating in 1966, Dr. Fine moved to San Francisco to complete his residency at UCSF. The story goes that the physician interviewing him for the residency program came in late and informed him she could not do his interview because she had a rally to go to in Berkeley, Dr. Fine accompanied her and from there on he was actively involved in civil and human rights groups and activities.
Shortly after this, Dr. Fine met Phillip Shapiro, a Bay Area psychiatrist and human rights activist. Dr. Shapiro was involved in several groups including the Medical Committee for Human Rights, Physicians for Social Responsibility, the California Commission for the Protection of Human Subjects, and the Black Panther Party. It was through Dr. Shapiro's mentorship that Dr. Fine became more actively involved in human rights causes. Dr. Shapiro named Dr. Fine as his replacement to be the Black Panther doctor for the month of August, 1968, after this Dr. Fine seemed to be the primary doctor for the Black Panther Party until the early 70s.
In the early 70s, Dr. Fine's focus shifted to prison reform. He helped establish the Security Ward within San Francisco General Hospital which meant prisoners could get proper medical and mental health care without being transferred to a state facility. Hospital staff also recieved proper training and established security measures to provide the necessary care to jail and psychiatric patients. In 1968, the MCHR conducted a survey in San Francisco and Alameda county jails that showed prison conditions to be horrible. This was followed by a 1969 report conducted by Diane Feinstein-led Special Advisory Committee that exposed even worse conditions. It wasn't until 1973 that a federal court judge - Judge Schnacke, ruled that jail conditions violated the Eighth Ammendment of the Constitution and constituted "cruel and unusual punishment". This was the cue for Dr. Fine - then Medical Chief of the Hospital Security Ward and Dr. Gerald Frank - former medical chief for San Francisco jails - to come up with a proposal to improve conditions in county jails. The proposal resulted in a grant with the goals of improving and providing more comprehensive health care programs and services to inmates along with increasing and training staff.
Dr. Fine married Kathleen Campbell in 1981 and they had twin daughters shortly after. At the height of the AIDS epidemic Dr. Fine was highly supportive in the opening of Ward 86 and providing quality care to all patients, especially with the stigma that came with being diagnosed with AIDS.
Dr. Fine accomplished this while also being a supportive husband to his wife and doting father to twin girls. The image of a male doctor may bring to mind a clean shaven man wearing a long white coat, perhaps a tie, very prim, very proper. Dr. Fine did not conform to that image and instead sported a full beard, wore custom mechanic shirts, an earring, a bulky turquoise bracelect and rode a motorcycle to work.
The former General Medicine Clinic was renamed as the Richard H. Fine People's Clinic in Dr. Fine's honor in 2016. Dr. Fine passed away in 2015.