Since 2011, Brown Countians for Quality Healthcare have been working to find a way to provide healthcare to all residents.
Now the group is taking another step by providing scholarships to people who wish to access medical care through the Brown County Health and Wellness Center.
The group has been awarding scholarships since May. They have spent $2,100 on scholarships for eight families including 11 adults and six children.
The Brown County Community Foundation awarded an $1,800 grant to the group that is included in that total.
“Brown County, statewide, looks under served. We have fewer physicians available, only one dentist in town. Now, of course, we’ve lost the Columbus link (with the retirement of Dr. John Alessi at Nashville Family Medicine), so the need is even greater in terms of service,” said Judith East with Brown Countians for Quality Healthcare.
Anyone who wishes to apply for a scholarship can do so by calling board President Bill Todd at 812-720-0886.
The group is also looking for funding to ensure they can cover the scholarships for as long as people need them.
“We’re down to about a month and a half worth of continuing scholarships,” East said.
The clinic hours have been extended to five days a week, which will help people access it more, East said. “We’ve had some people who have signed up for the clinic, but because of their limited hours they’ve had difficulty getting in, so this will make a big difference,” she said.
The group gets a discounts on memberships from Wellness for Life, but they still need assistance with securing funding for current and future scholarships.
Anyone who wishes to donate can send money to Brown Countians for Quality Healthcare at P.O. Box 1382, Nashville, IN 47448. Checks can be made out to Brown Countians for Quality Healthcare.
Questions about scholarships can also be directed to Todd by calling him, East said.
In 2012, graduate students with the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University conducted a study and identified Brown County as a “needy county” in the state when it came to healthcare needs.
“They specifically looked at obesity, smoking and diabetes as major needs in our community and suggested it might be nice to have a federally qualified health clinic here in town. But there’s a lot of hoops you have to jump through to meet the qualifications for that, so we’ve just been looking at alternatives,” East said.
The group had previously approached Brown County Schools and the county government with forming a clinic similar to Activate Healthcare in Monroe County where the county government provides an on-site clinic for its employees. “They weren’t interested at the time,” she said.
At the same time, the group found out about Wellness for Life, which operates the Brown County Health and Wellness Center, Laura Hammack took over as schools superintendent and began looking at Wellness for Life, too.
“She (Hammack) recognized the value of it and jumped on it. Now we have this clinic. They are already saving money, and the county has seen they are saving money and they are finally buying in,” East said.
“It’s all coming together, finally.”
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WHERE: Brown County Schools’ Eagle Park, 1749 State Road 46 East
HOURS: 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Mondays and Thursdays; 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. Closed for lunch from noon to 1 p.m.
PHONE: 812-720-3297
MORE INFORMATION: bcsc.healthcare-redefined.com
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