Monday, August 8: RHG will host Roanoke Valley Chamber of Commerce’s Business After Hours at the Women’s Clinic located on Medical Center Drive at 5:30 p.m. featuring a ribbon cutting for the newly acquired medical center.
Monday, August 8: Throughout the day, the Roanoke Rapids Pediatric Clinic on Highway 125 will host a Patient & Partner Appreciation Luau.
Thursday, August 11: The Jackson Medical Clinic will host with the theme There’s No Place Like Home, highlighting the Patient Centered Medical Home.
The Henderson Clinic will offer free dental screenings for migrant and seasonal farm workers camps and the public.
Friday, August 12: The Roanoke Rapids Adult Clinic will emphasize patient appreciation with the theme Moving towards Good Health.
National Health Center Week has been celebrated for more than 30 years to recognize the services and contributions of Community, Migrant, Homeless and Public Housing Health Centers.
“While there are countless reasons to celebrate America’s Health Centers, among the most important and unique is their long success in providing access to affordable, high quality, cost effective health care to medically vulnerable and underserved people throughout the United States,” RHG said in a news release.
Founded in 1974, it grew out of a community collaboration of concerned citizens to provide low-cost and free health care services to people living in Northeastern North Carolina. “As the community’s only safety net clinic, the responsibility to the growing number of uninsured in the community is immense,” the news release said. “Rural Health clinics can be considered the patient centered medical home for the thousands of residents in the Roanoke Valley and surrounding area.”
No one is ever refused service because of inability to pay. Inability to pay is explicitly defined as those patients with an annual household income of 200 percent and below the federal poverty level.
All of RHG services are offered on a sliding fee scale based upon income and family size.
More than 30,000 people are served by the RHG medical clinics.
Rural Health Group is one of thousands of Federally Qualified Health Centers in the country. “FQHCs set themselves apart from other providers by delivering a wider range of services to improve the overall health of their patients and communities,” RHG said. “Rural Health Group is a non-profit medical conglomerate that offers primary medical, dental, behavioral health and pharmacy services to more than 30,000 patients at fourteen medical centers located in six counties throughout Northeastern North Carolina.”
In addition, RHG has established five school-based clinics to service students in public schools in the service area. “The mission of Rural Health Group is to provide excellent quality primary and dental care as well as outreach services to all people in a culturally sensitive manner with a special emphasis on the underserved.”
Said CEO Brian Harris: “The mission guides the management and staff of Rural Health Group to identify health needs in the community, develop programs to meet those needs and provide superior quality services for our patients. As a community-founded, funded and focused organization, Rural Health Group offers a comprehensive package of services to not only meet the standards of care in the community, but exceed those standards.”
Harris said he “values patients and community partners who place their confidence in the high standard of service the Rural Health provides. The board of the directors are community residents, of which half are users of the Rural Health medical and dental services. The events scheduled at the local clinics will not only showcase the organization’s commitment to excellent medical care, employment for more than 300 residents; but will also allow patients and partners to express their commitment to supporting their community health centers.”
