Kacy Hilden, outreach director at the City of Refuge, a ministry of Life Center in Centralia, has taken on another role at his church in recent months: interior designer for a future medical clinic.
As he walks thoughw the church building, a 30,000-square-foot facility that used to be the Harland bank check factory, he speaks enthusiastically about changes he’s planning.
“We could take the meeting hall, put up some walls and split it down the middle like this and have a couple of exam rooms,” Hilden said. “Maybe one day we could use some space for a fitness room.”
Instead of adding more pews or new carpet, Hilden is searching for medical equipment and supplies. He, along with a group of about a dozen physicians, nurses and other medical professionals, have been meeting over the past six months to devise a plan to provide services to low-income and uninsured families. The group is planning to use the church to house a free faith-based clinic to be called “Health and Hope Medical Outreach,” located a couple of blocks from Washington Elementary School.
In addition to serving low-income families, services will also be available to the homeless. Patients don’t have to be a member of a particular denomination to use the clinic, according to Kevin Caserta, chief medical officer at Providence Centralia Hospital, one of the doctors who have been initiating plans for the facility.
Physicians will volunteer to staff the clinic, which will provide basic triage. However, services at a faith-based clinic do not stop at medical healing.
“Treatment doesn’t just stop with a person’s short-term medical needs,” said Dr. Michael Strohbach, who works at the Steck Medical Group. “We want to make sure their spiritual needs are met as well as improve their support systems for other needs short-term. Medical care is only one way people hurt. With this clinic, we want to help the whole person.”
Medical professionals will be able to assess a person’s health needs, but staff from the church will also be on hand to assist individuals in other ways, such as providing food and clothing, prayer, laundry and shower facilities, resources for resume-building and job searches — even make referrals for car repair.
Services will be provided free of charge. If patients need more extensive treatment than the clinic can provide, the physicians will be able to refer the patients to other low-cost medical services, Caserta said.
Caserta said about one dozen doctors, nurses and other medical professionals from Providence Centralia Hospital and other medical providers in Lewis County have expressed interest in volunteering to work at the facility. An opening date hasn’t been set yet, but the goal is to have the clinic operational within six months to a year, Caserta said.
The clinic is tentatively set to be open two nights a month. Days and hours of operation haven’t been finalized.
The group is in the process of applying for 501(c)(3) nonprofit status. It is also taking donations for the clinic, which can be in the form of monetary donations, partition walls, exam tables and medical supplies and equipment. Caserta said the clinic will be run by in-kind donations and possibly some federal grants.
The group has been working with a free medical clinic in Cowlitz County to get tips on running a free clinic and what types of resources it needs to get started.
“It’s been a great resource and it’s been something to model after to know where we have to start operationally,” said registered nurse Angela Dickson.
The clinic will be run out of Life Center’s Diamond Street location at first, but parishioners hope to eventually have similar clinics set up at Life Center’s other locations on Rock Street in Centralia and on Oyler Road in Ethel.
The clinic is still in the planning stages, but potential patients are already eager for it to open.
“It’s something that’s going to help my family a lot,” said 22-year-old Centralia resident Jesus Cebrero.
Cebrero has been searching for a work for about a year. He lost his job at a Chehalis fencing company because he said, like many businesses hit hard by the recession, his employer had to lay people off in order to meet its budget. He’s concerned about medical care and worries about his mother, a diabetic who also has high blood pressure. She is uninsured, but her husband has medical insurance. However, Cebrero says his parents have told him it’s too expensive for them to pay to ensure them both.
“Sometimes I really want to help her pay her bills, but without work, it’s hard to help her,” Cebrero said.
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Editor’s Note: This story has been changed since it was originally published. The original version incorrectly stated how often the facility would be open.
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Rachel Thomson: (360) 807-8245
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How to Help the Health and Hope Medical Outreach Clinic
Donations of medical equipment and supplies as well as monetary donations are being taken for use in the proposed Health and Hope Medical Outreach faith-based clinic. Tax-deductible donations can be made to the Life Center, 621 S. Diamond St., Centralia, WA 98531. For more information on how to donate, call 736-5898.
The group behind the clinic is also looking for medical professionals who are interested in donating time or resources for the clinic. Anyone interested should call 827-6800.
