ROGERS — In the former emergency room of St. Mary's Hospital, the Community Clinic is helping keep some patients out of the new emergency room across town. By acting as their "medical home," Community Clinic can provide continuing health care to people without insurance or the means to pay for a regular doctor visit. In the past, some uninsured patients had no choice other than the emergency room.

The ribbon was cut at the new location at the end of August, but it took a couple of weeks to get moved in, Cambre Horne-Brooks, director of development, explained. It's now open and has double the space in the Center for Nonprofits at St. Mary's on Walnut Street.

There are five Community Clinic locations in Benton and Washington counties, including two for dental services. In 2008, Community Clinic became a Federally Qualified Health Care provider for Benton County and took over the management of Tree of Life Clinic. Tree of Life Clinic grew out of the old Poplar House Clinic, which was affiliated with St. Mary's Hospital beginning in 1992.

Double the space means double the staff. There are two full-time family practice doctors, a pediatrician and a nurse practitioner who specializes in pediatrics and a nurse practitioner who specializes in prenatal care. More staff will be added, Horne-Brooks said.

The clinic's 115 employees also include a full-time social worker who can help get patients signed up for services like the state health insurance for children. There's also one full-time employee dedicated to prescription assistance.

Most of the adult patients at Community Clinic are employed, Horne-Brooks said, but most of them are uninsured. Almost all patients live below the poverty level, she said, and 60 percent of them are children.

Patients pay for services on a sliding scale, although no one is ever turned away. Most patients are happy to contribute to their health care, Horne-Brooks said, and the clinic is always much less expensive then the E.R. The patient pays $20 for an average visit and it can be billed for later payment. Although the fee is low, it's important to the clinic which depends on patient contributions to pay the bills.

"We're not a Readi-Med, we're a medical home for patients," she said. The difference is that Community Clinic does regular developmental check ups for children along with all the vaccinations. Their interest is in keeping patients well.

They treat chronic conditions as well, including hypertension, heart disease, cancer and diabetes. A new program will focus on behavioral health. Because most people are more comfortable talking to their primary care physician, it makes sense to begin treating behavior-related issues with the family doctor, Horne-Brooks said.

There a smoking cessation class where patients can get prescriptions to help them kick the habit.

The clinic also provides prenatal check ups through the first two trimesters when an OB/GYN physician takes over.

The clinic couldn't have expanded without help from the federal government, Horne-Brooks said. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, also called stimulus money, paid for renovations at the former hospital. Some of the equipment and furniture was left when Mercy moved out and that helped as well.

The new staff will be paid by the Tobacco Tax and those funds should continue into the future Horne-Brooks said.

"Everyone should have the choice of a community health center," said Kathy Grisham, executive director at the ribbon cutting. "We provide high-quality services that emphasize primary care and wellness so that families can stay healthy and out of hospitals. We need to invest in an accessible and affordable community health system that can reduce disparities, improve health and achieve cost savings."

News, Pages 1, 6 on 10/07/2009

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