Startzman paves way to take Medicaid patients
By LYDIA GEHRING; LYDIA GEHRING | |
Proquest LLC |
The past year has been one of positive change for the
In less than a month, the clinic will begin accepting
Executive Director
"We will provide free health care to those who lack health insurance but we will also accept patients who have
The clinic saw 2,259 patients in 2013. According to Parsons, it already has received a "significant amount" of calls from people who have
As the clinic prepared for the increase in patients, it laid the groundwork in 2013 by making a few new hires to its staff, including a second full-time nurse practitioner who started
"She was a student here and we were impressed by her heart for our patients," Parsons said. "There aren't nurse practitioners standing on every street corner so this has been fantastic. Our board made the decision to invest in the future of the clinic."
The clinic also applied for a VISTA, which places a federal employee in an agency for one year.
"Our goal was to break down barriers for our patients and for access to what our patients need," Parsons said.
The final employee the
"She will be enrolling a lot of people," Parsons said, "but unfortunately she will be fixing things for them as well."
Luckily for the clinic, it has a strong volunteer base, which will be crucial as its patients increase. In 2013, there were 378 volunteers who gave 6,047 hours of service.
"The people who choose to volunteer here see two things," Parsons said. "One, they see the need and that it isn't being met. And two, they have a heart for the patient population. The volunteers see that our patients have fallen on hard times. Some of them are former patients and now they are volunteers who want to give back. Or they might be retirees who just want to help out. We have elementary groups, church groups, Scouts -- all of those things together tell me people believe in our mission."
This year, the
"It will be for nurse practitioners who are fresh out of school and be for one year," Parsons said. "This will give them an opportunity to get their feet wet and we will be able to pay them, as well as really expose them to what you would see here at the clinic, as opposed to what they would get in a traditional doctor's office."
This past year was a learning one for the
"2013 was a pivotal year for us," Parsons said. "We looked back and celebrated where the clinic had come from, what we are currently doing now and what we need to do to fill the health care gaps in the community. It was a learning year for us but at the same time, it was very fulfilling to see the number of people in the community who support us in terms of money and donations."
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Wordcount: | 711 |
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