Doing more with less

For more than 10 years, the Saint Luke’s Foundation has been providing operational funding to several area free clinics and Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) – funding that allowed these organizations to utilize the dollars wherever they are most needed.

“The beauty of operating dollars is they are operating dollars,” said Lee Elmore, executive director of North Coast Health Ministry. “Operating dollars are really difficult to come by, and Saint Luke’s provision of operating support is a testimony to their belief in our ability to provide comprehensive health care to the uninsured community in northeast Ohio.”

In 2009, Saint Luke’s provided operational funding to two local free clinics (North Coast Health Ministry and The Free Medical Clinic of Greater Cleveland) and three FQHCs (NEON – Northeast Ohio Neighborhood Health Services, Inc.; Neighborhood Family Practice; and Care Alliance).

 

         North Coast Health Ministry

North Coast Health Ministry (NCHM), a faith-based free clinic, has been providing health care services to low income individuals in western Cuyahoga and eastern Lorain counties for more than 20 years. Over the past two years, patient visits have increased by 40%.

Last year alone, 2,419 patients came to NCHM, many suffering from chronic medical conditions such as diabetes and hypertension. Over 20,000 individual services were provided and $2.3 million in prescription drugs were dispensed.

“We could never have anticipated the challenges we’d face in 2009,” said Lee Elmore, executive director of North Coast Health Ministry. “We were forced to reduce our staff. But, the efficiencies afforded by our new electronic medical records system (partially funded in 2007 by the Saint Luke’s Foundation) allowed us to serve more patients and fill more prescriptions than ever before.”

The flexibility and ease of use of the electronic medical records system is the key to its success. Physicians, nurses and clinicians use the system, and all information is stored electronically, from patient records, to progress notes and pharmacy records. Even hand written progress notes can be incorporated, as they can be scanned in, and thereby become a permanent part of the medical record. And annual audits, which used to take days, are now completed in just a few hours.

 

  The Free Medical Clinic of Greater Cleveland

“Funding from the Saint Luke’s Foundation in 2009 was essential in helping The Free Clinic maintain current services in tough economic times, while also facilitating our response to greater demand prompted by higher unemployment and rising poverty rates.” –Danny Williams, Executive Director of The Free Medical Clinic

For 40 years, The Free Clinic has been a safe haven for under-served and marginalized populations. Over the last several years, The Free Clinic has provided an average of 50,000 services to more than 10,000 uninsured and underinsured people in Northeast Ohio

In addition to general operating support, funding from Saint Luke’s also supported The Free Clinic’s Expanded Access Initiative, a new effort to improve The Free Clinic’s outreach and access among under-served minority and immigrant communities in northeast Ohio who lack insurance coverage; increase the number of patients The Free Clinic is able to serve annually; and improve health outcomes for vulnerable populations by providing people with a medical “home”.

 

Northeast Ohio Neighborhood
Health Services, Inc. (NEON)

“Since its inception, NEON has maintained a history of collaboration with its community partners to assure the provision of quality health care services to residents of Northeast Ohio.” – Willie F. Austin, President and CEO of NEON

Since 1967, NEON has been committed to providing quality primary care services to Greater Cleveland’s most economically vulnerable citizens. In 2009, NEON serviced 41,265 individuals despite the many challenges the year presented to safety-net providers across the country.

NEONs network of six community health centers has greatly expanded the availability of primary health care services to residents in the Greater Cleveland area. The health centers offer accessible, comprehensive primary care services to the entire family, including adult medicine, pediatrics, family practice, OB/GYN, behavioral health, dental, optometry and podiatry services. Ancillary services such as laboratory, x-ray, nutrition and pharmacy services are also available, addressing a wide array of primary care needs.

The 2009 Saint Luke’s Foundation’s $145,000 grant was instrumental in allowing NEON to continue meeting the needs of area families through a wide spectrum of primary care services provided at the community health center locations throughout Cleveland’s east side and the City of East Cleveland. This operational funding helped to support close to 140,000 visits providing medical, dental and enabling services throughout the year.

 

Neighborhood Family Practice (NFP)

“The Saint Luke’s Foundation has been a strong partner of Neighborhood Family Practice for many years and directly supports care of over 300 uninsured patients each year.”
– Laurel Domanski Diaz, Director of Business operations for Neighborhood Family Practice

Neighborhood Family Practice has been serving Cleveland’s near west side with quality primary healthcare for 30 years, with a focus on services for the medically disenfranchised and underserved populations and the Hispanic community. Serving over 11,000 people in the past year, Neighborhood Family Practice remains a vital resource during this critical time of increased need for patients.

“Like many other Federally Qualified Health Centers, NFP received funding from the federal government in 2009 to make much needed capital improvements, prepare for the implementation of electronic medical records, and expand services,” said Laurel Domanski Diaz, director of business operations, NFP. “That being said, we still faced fiscal challenges on a daily basis with our base operational dollars – thus the need for ongoing support from foundations like Saint Luke’s.”

Operational funding from Saint Luke’s translated into 750 uninsured patient visits (including behavioral health visits, which are a scarce resource to the uninsured) in 2009. In addition, the number of unduplicated patient users at NFP increased to 11,677, a 5.3% increase from the previous year; and the number of uninsured patients grew by 12.3% to 2,392.

“Without the support of Saint Luke’s, NFP would not have been able to meet the increased patient needs of the past year,” added Domanski.

 

Care Alliance Health Center

“Care Alliance has been fortunate to have a partner in the Saint Luke’s Foundation over the years, through grant support, through seminars and community events, and through mentorship and tireless informal support.”
– Francis Afram-Guening, CEO of Care Alliance Health Center

Care Alliance Health Center is the leading provider of primary medical care and comprehensive dental services for individuals who are homeless or residents of public housing in Cleveland. Sixty-five percent of their annual budget comes from the federal government; however, that funding does not grow with increases in patient volume or to keep pace with inflation. In addition, 87% of the patient population served by Care Alliance is completely uninsured. As a result of these factors, Care Alliance needs the support of local foundations and the community to grow its capacity to meet the increasing need for affordable health care services.

Care Alliance relies on innovative thinking and strategic collaborations to meet increasing demand. Expanded Medical Capacity operational funding from the Saint Luke’s Foundation is one example of that. The funding allowed the organization to expand its medical team by adding staff including a part time family physician with a specific focus on women’s health, along with a part time medical assistant to support that physician. This additional staffing not only positioned Care Alliance to serve more patients, but also increased the level of services by providing specialized women’s health care, and enhanced the overall quality of services.

 

Dollars and more

In additional to direct funding of providing these clinics and health centers with operating support, Saint Luke’s Foundation also contributes to their staff education and training. The foundation has conducted constructive seminars on grant writing and other topics pertaining to non-profit organization management; and provided staff leadership for community councils and workgroups.

Next Story...

Table of Contents...

Disclaimer: In compliance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, all stories about specific individuals are told with their express written informed consent.