Time To Care

Working at a Community Health Center (CHC) site has provided me with the opportunity to provide care to a variety of people from all walks of life. Financially, many of the patients are uninsured and utilize a special program that provides care on a “sliding scale type” basis for patients without health insurance. I care for patients that pay for services out of pocket with no insurance and no other coverage. I care for patients with Medicaid and Medicare that could clearly go to any provider of their choice, however in many cases due to transportation limitations will often times choose to come to our facility. Occasionally, I care for patients that have private health insurance but again, chose our site because it is more convenient.

The unique feature of working in such environment is the ability to also learn about my patients varying levels of health education. It is interesting to see groups of individuals as they come together to learn about their health issues and concerns. It is also interesting to see how some people seem to either truly understand their chronic and acute health issues and others simply lack that understanding. This gives the providers an avenue for more support, encouragement and education. It is really rewarding to provide this support and see the patient grow and become a successful advocate for themselves and truly understand what they must do to maintain achievement of their health goals.

Something about having the time for this education is one key difference of working at a CHC. Many times in private health care settings providers are reimbursed on the number of patients seen on a daily basis, however the more patients you see the less time you are able to spend with each patient. I enjoy CHC work environments because I actually get to take the time educating and empowering my patients. I am able to arm them with knowledge to make better health care decisions, now matter where they seek care.