Minnesota Asylum Collaborative (MAC)
The Minnesota Asylum Collaborative (MAC) is a new initiative in Global Medicine, as a unique partnership with the University of Minnesota’s Phillips Neighborhood Clinic (PNC), Physicians for Human Rights (PHR), and the Center for Victims of Torture (CVT).
This MAC clinic operates out of CVT’s St. Paul Healing Center (SPHC), where asylum seekers who are applying for legal status in the United States can go to receive forensic medical and mental health evaluations.
PHR supports more than 20 of these asylum clinics across the United States, and MAC is the first clinic in PHR's network in Minnesota. Asylum attorneys can request a forensic evaluation from PHR directly via the PHR website form, which allows attorneys to request a provider from anywhere in PHR's statewide or nationwide network.
These PHR visits are conducted by a licensed physician from the Phillips Neighborhood Clinic (PNC), with a medical student serving as scribes. PNC is student-run and faculty supervised, and offers free medical care within the community. MAC visits are conducted in CVT’s space, where exam rooms and other spaces were specially designed using trauma-informed practices to ensure clients feel comfortable and respected.
Note: Attorneys should select the option "Clinic Direct-Referral" in the request form above.
Training to Complete Asylum Evaluations
PHR recommends the Asylum Medicine Training Initiative, as recognized qualification for practitioners to complete asylum evaluations independently. All MAC clinicians have completed AMTI or equivalent. This course is free and is suitable for clinicians at all levels of training.
MAC in the News
- Hear about MAC’s new first-of-its-kind clinic in Minnesota in this 2024 MPR interview.
MAC Clinicians
| Faculty | 2026-27 Medical Students | 2025-26 Medical Students | 2024-25 Medical Students |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nathan Bertelsen, MD | Maggie Eckerstorfer | Brady Kunz | Henry Baer-Benson |
| Calla Brown, MD | Kourtni Lind-Watson | Chidiogo Orakwue | Lauren Buchholz |
| Mike Aylward, MD | Sakhi Gautam | Faraz Fardi | Sara Anderson |
| Patricia Walker, MD | Daniel Panikkar | Isaiah Miller | |
| Sarah Kesler, MD | Matia Solomon | Rebekah Polverari | |
| Nasreen Quadri, MD | |||
| Tim Ramer, MD |
Contact
General inquiries: Minnesota Asylum Collaborative, [email protected]
PHR inquiries: Asylum Coordinator, Physicians for Human Rights, [email protected]
SPHC Program Manager: Sara Nelson, MSW, LICSW, Center for Victims of Torture, [email protected]
MAC Director: Nathan Bertelsen, MD, MPH, Global Medicine, [email protected]