In the midst of nationwide health care debates, some groups in Lake Highlands are building an urgent care clinic to directly help the large population of uninsured residents. The exact location has not been determined but possibilities include Skillman-Whitehurst and Forest-Audelia.
The clinic, which might be operating as soon as late fall, is expected to see about 10,000 patient visits per year, according to Jeff Ward, director of external focus at Watermark Community Church. Watermark partnered with Questcare Partners and District 10 councilman Jerry Allen to fund, build and run the clinic.
Uninsured residents will be able to receive both medical and spiritual care at the clinic. While medical staff will treat injuries and illnesses, another designated staff will offer to pray with patients and connect them to church ministries at Watermark.
The effort began when Questcare, a specialty physician group, decided to do a charity project. Matt Bush, a Questcare medical director at Medical City Dallas Hospital and member of Watermark Community Church, asked Ward if he would be interested. Watermark decided to partner in the project to help meet community need.
Around 26 percent of Texans have no health insurance—the highest rate in the nation—according to the 2009 US Census. In the DFW metroplex, the number is closer to 30 percent according to W. Stephen Love, president and CEO of the Dallas-Fort Worth Hospital Council, and Ward estimates the percentage of uninsured residents near Skillman-Whitehurst might be as high as 90 percent. Regardless of whether President Barack Obama’s health care policies are enacted in Texas, Bush says the clinic will remain relevant because there will continue to be under-insured individuals the clinic can serve.
Ward approached city councilmen hoping they might get involved because of a shared goal of “community transformation,” he says. Allen took the bait.
“It made sense that instead of using valuable city resources to put a band aid on a problem and then walk away, that instead the city [could reach] out to caring groups that put in local clinics that actually treat and give medical advice,” Allen says.
Allen points to the fact that only 40 percent of the city’s approximate 170,000 ambulance runs result in clients’ transportation to the hospital. The other 60 percent is a “waste of citizen and taxpayers’ money” and “clogs our 911 system,” he says, noting the Oak Cliff house that burned down because 911 operators were unable to answer calls, which Jeff Siegel attributes to budget cuts.
Both Allen and Ward hope community members will get involved. Volunteer opportunities can range from plumbing to plastic surgery, according to Ward.
“I think people are looking to use their skills in ways beyond the daily grind,” Ward says.
While Questcare plans to provide funding to staff the clinic, Watermark will bear a substantial amount of the costs. Ward expects a six digit–figure will get the clinic up and running. If corporations joined the partnership as Ward and Bush hope, they would also share in the expenses.
