By Michael V. Hannigan/HCNow
A new medical clinic in Athens is offering some hope to those currently left on the outside of the healthcare system.
Family Circle of Care opened a new clinic at 1001 N. Palestine Street in April. Family Circle of Care is a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC), which means it qualifies for federal funds to help with healthcare costs.
“We have the ability to get reimbursement from the federal government for seeing people that qualify,” said Site Manager Bradley Nelson.
Nelson says that the clinic treats fully-insured patients as well at its brand new facility.
Although now a stand-alone, non-profit entity, Family Circle of Care was originally a part of the Trinity Mother Francis Health System. The Athens clinic has a pediatrician and nurse practitioners in women’s health and family medicine and is open Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The clinic has a sliding fee scale, which means the clinic will base fees on a patient’s income and household size. Which leads to one of the most important features of the clinic, in my opinion, which is the Community Referral Services office.
In addition to helping figure out fees, the clinic also helps find outside resources for families, including WIC Nutritional Services, The Andrews Center, The Salvation Army, East Texas Crisis Center, Children’s Advocacy and others.
Material about the clinic reads: “We are focused on your health and encourage you to work with us as partners in care so you can make informed decisions about your healthcare. We are here for you every step of the way for your family’s medical care.”
With that in mind, the clinic also provides educational services about topics such as childbirth, diabetes, nutrition and parenting skills. They also offer nutrition services and financial counseling.
“We want to help the community as much as we can,” said Nelson.
Because of all the services available, potential patients are encouraged to call and set up an appointment with the Community Referral Services office before anyone gets sick. Doing that will ensure the clinic and patient are on the same page about fees when someone is ill and also makes patients aware of other resources available.
You can contact the Athens Family Circle of Care at 903-535-9041 or 903-593-1892.
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