Will County Community Health Center expands walk-in clinic hours

JOLIET – As part of a growing trend nationwide, the Will County Community Health Center is joining other walk-in clinics that cater to people with hectic schedules and a desire for quick and easy health care access.

This week, the clinic expanded its walk-in hours – now staying open two additional hours until 6 p.m. Monday through Thursday.

The move is a response to the growing demand for same-day services and the increase in the insured population with the advent of the Affordable Care Act, said Gina Wilkins, family nurse practitioner at the clinic.

“Spaces were filling up quickly. We would fill up before noon sometimes or not have as much availability,” Wilkins said. “People were coming in that afternoon and we would have to tell them you have to come back tomorrow or set up an appointment. It was frustrating, so having these additional hours will be helpful.”

A good portion of the patients coming to the clinic are low-income, have unreliable transportation or have children in school – three factors that put stresses on families that are sometimes forced to choose between health care, work and family.

“It’s nice to have later times because, depending on when people work, they can come in a little bit later and not have to miss work,” Wilkins said. “For some people, that can cause work instability, so that is a big factor for a lot of my patients. I don’t want people losing their jobs because they need health care.”

With the additional hours, the clinic – one of just 1,200 federally qualified health centers in the U.S. – is working to remarket itself as more than “a last resort,” said Dr. Howard Ehrman, chief medical officer for the clinic.

“A lot of people see [federally qualified health centers] like us historically as the clinic of last resort as opposed to we’re here because we give really good, quality care that’s more accessible than people realize,” Ehrman said.

The clinic is achieving this by adding more physicians into the walk-in rotation schedule, he said.

The number of uninsured patients at the clinic has declined with the creation of the Affordable Care Act, said Mary Maragos, the center’s chief executive officer.

“I think what it really translates to is people are able to get the care that they’ve been needing instead of putting it off,” Maragos said.

In 2013, a little more than half of the clinic’s patients were uninsured. Now, just 27.5 percent remain uninsured. About 61.7 percent are enrolled through Medicaid this year, compared to 42.2 percent in 2013, according to Maragos.

Ehrman said the clinic also has counselors available to assist people in navigating the health care marketplace, and signing up for Medicaid, food stamps and health insurance.

The clinic also prides itself on catering to the county’s Hispanic population, Ehrman said, with about 44 percent of the population serviced through the clinic identified as such.

A mother of two, Josefina Mancera found herself at the Will County Community Health Center’s walk-in clinic Tuesday for her oldest daughter’s school physical and vaccinations.

The family moved to Joliet from Mexico just three weeks ago and is without health insurance. Her 7-year-old daughter, Milagros Rodriguez-Mancera, is beginning school next week, Mancera told The Herald-News through a translator, and the clinic provided the necessary shots and other screenings.

On Tuesday, Ehrman told Mancera about a state program called “All Kids,” which offers families of four that earn less than $77,112 annually free Medicaid coverage for children younger than 18. The Medicaid program also is available to children who are not U.S. citizens, he said, and it’s possible Mancera will qualify.

The clinic accepts Medicare, Medicaid and most private insurance, with a sliding fee scale for clients without insurance.

“Our motto is to try not to deny anyone access to the clinic every day,” Ehrman said.