Boone’s free medical

clinic given a boost

with grant
By Scott Nicholson

The local free medical clinic is getting new equipment and expanding its services, even as its patient load increases.

Mary Moretz, chairman of the board of the Community Care Clinic, said new machinery and lab equipment will be funded by a grant that will also allow for better patient records.

The clinic received a North Carolina Office of Rural Health grant of $71,900.

“This grant is to create an electronic patient record,” Moretz said, which would help access records between different health agencies.

The collaborative effort will allow the clinic’s physicians to send records to other health-care providers.

“This is the kind of thing I believe is being talked about on the national level. We need to digitize our information system to cut down errors, be more efficient, and reduce costs,” she said.

The Community Care Clinic is a North Carolina Safety Net provider and will be linked via software to other providers.

The grant will also purchase an EKG machine, a copier, a defibrillator and some other clinic equipment.

The new equipment was welcome, Moretz said, but the clinic also has a need for more staff.

The clinic recently hired Rebecca Moore as a part-time director.

“Right now we only open four hours a week, on Wednesday evenings,” she said. “Our dream is to go to 40 hours a week.”

Moretz said additional funding was critical upon being able to hire personnel, while also getting medical personnel to volunteer.

The clinic handled 864 patient visits in 2008.

“We have been operating strictly on the goodness of our volunteers,” Moretz said. “The mission of the Community Care Clinic is to provide care to people who don’t have any health insurance.”

The clinic started in 2005, with two local doctors providing health-care services to Hospitality House clients, and other volunteers began planning the clinic.

Physicians assistant Marian Peters and Dr. Jack Whitlock began the initial effort.

The clinic opened in 2006, subleasing a portion of the county-owned Hannah building from the Hunger Coalition. The following year, the clinic received start-up funds from Blue Cross/Blue Shield.

Moretz said there could be more opportunities to work with Appalachian State University’s new Allied Health program and Appalachian Regional Healthcare System. Various organizations have also provided donations.

“This is the really heart-breaking part, that we have to turn a lot of people away,” she said. “We ask people to make appointments and, if we can, we’ll take walk-ins.”

People without insurance often use the emergency room for primary care, because they can’t go to a doctor and put off treatment. Those people could reduce overall medical care spending by getting regular treatment and primary care.

Moretz said Watauga County had the highest rate of uninsured people in the state, at around 31 percent.

“That’s not something we’re proud of, and with the downturn in the economy, it’s probably higher now,” Moretz said.

While the national debate over universal health care and rising health-care and insurance costs continues, Moretz said the free clinic is one small snapshot of a larger problem.

“I wish we had medical care in this country that everybody could access and afford,” Moretz said.

The clinic also provides chiropractor services, mental health counseling, and acupuncture.

Moretz said she was inspired by hard-working professionals who took the time to volunteer their services.

“We hope to receive more grants and possibly donations so that we can have a full-time executive director, a full-time clinic director, and a full-time provider, so that we can fulfill the mission we’ve set for ourselves,” Moretz said.

The organization’s Web site is www.ccclinic.org. It is located on 141 Health Services Drive in the Bamboo area of Boone. For appointments, call (828) 262-1628.