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Free clinic may cost $150K

By JOHN MUNFORD
jmunford@TheCitizenNews.com

It’s going to take an estimated $150,000 to start up a free clinic in Fayette County for the working poor who lack insurance and don’t qualify for state medical assistance.

That’s the ballpark estimate, and it could change, according to officials organizing the Fayette CARE (Compassion And Respect for Everyone) Clinic.

“We want to provide just as nice, high-quality care as any medical facility,” said Dr. Betsy Horton, one of the clinic’s founders who will serve as medical director. Fund-raising will be crucial, she said, and perhaps a part-time grant writer will be employed to help fund the clinic’s operations and necessary supplies including medicine.

The clinic will provide primary medical and dental care, and will “network” with other specialists as necessary, Horton said. The clinic won’t duplicate services already provided by the Fayette County Health Department, Horton noted.

Doctors and nurses will donate their time at the clinic, and lay volunteers are also needed for office duties, maintenance and other tasks.

A search for possible locations is underway, with a possibility of one in Peachtree City. The group estimates about 5,000 sq. ft. is needed to provide a little room to grow.

The local clinic will likely be open one night a week, at least initially, and patients must be without insurance in addition to meeting income guidelines. A state Medicaid worker will also be on hand to make sure patients don’t qualify for assistance under other state programs, including a program that provides free medications for persons with certain chronic illnesses.

Horton will serve as the clinic’s medical director, while Mary Ann Cox is the executive director and Jennifer Pate is the administrator. The three have discussed the proposed clinic for some time and are now seeking assistance from the public.

Piedmont Fayette Hospital and hospital CEO Darrell Cutts have been tremendously supportive of the effort to establish a free clinic, Horton noted. The hospital has agreed to handle the clinic’s outpatient laboratory testing and basic radiology services such as X-rays, Pate said.

Donations of office and medical supplies are needed in addition to good-old fashioned money, organizers said. To donate or volunteer, call Pate at 678-358-2566.

Horton fills in at a similar free clinic in Morrow and she said the experience is heartwarming. The Good Shepherd Clinic is open Monday nights from 6:30 to 8:30 and Horton said, “I feel really tired when I get there, but when I leave I feel so good.”

The clinic’s pharmacy could largely be stocked by samples donated from local physicians, Horton said. Monetary donations will also be needed to buy other prescriptions.

Cox noted that persons who don’t have jobs that provide medical insurance find it extremely difficult to pay out-of-pocket healthcare expenses.

Cox said she has become involved with helping the local Hispanic community through the outreach program at Holy Trinity Catholic Church. There is a significant need for medical and dental care in that group, she added.

“They have no Social Security number, no insurance and no employer who helps them with things like that,” said Cox, who often directs them to several local physicians.

Cox said she was confident the clinic would be a success because “this community is a very giving community.”

Not that it will be easy, warned Pastor Jimmy Lewis of the Good Shepherd free clinic in Morrow, which has operated for five years. Speaking to a group of volunteers last week, Pastor Lewis said there will be significant challenges for the local clinic, but he urged organizers to have faith and, somehow, God will meet the clinic’s needs.

He noted that Good Shepherd does not require clients to view a Christian video or make any commitments. The care comes without any strings attached, he added.

Pastor Lewis said the participation of lay volunteers would be crucial to helping the clinic get off the ground here.