Family House, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit agency whose mission is to serve as a home away from home for the families of seriously ill children being treated at the University of California San Francisco Children
Family House was founded in 1981 to provide a comfortable, supportive residence for the families of pediatric cancer patients. The idea of Family House germinated in the 1970's as the UCSF Medical Center began pioneering pediatric cancer research and treatments. Along with the increasing success in treating pediatric cancers came an influx of young patients whose families had nowhere to stay. Many were forced to sleep on the hospital floor, in waiting room chairs, or in their cars. With cancer treatment taking weeks or even months, such situations often became severe hardships.
A small group, headed up by then-Chief of Pediatric Clinical Oncology, Dr. Art Ablin and his wife, Debbie, founded the first Family House across the street from the hospital in 1981. In 2016, the organization moved to the Nancy and Stephen Grand Family House, an 80-bedroom facility in San Francisco's Mission Bay neighborhood.
Parents bring children to UCSF from all over the country and all over the world without means to pay for the high price of a hotel room in San Francisco
Family House is open 24 hours per day, 365 days per year. Families come from at least 50 miles away, and are referred by UCSF pediatric social workers, who assess family needs and pre-screen residents. Those who have the greatest financial need are referred first. UCSF Children’s Hospital approximates that two-thirds of the families who stay at Family House are low-income families.
