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| Knox County Health Department Receives Grant Funds for Further KCCHC Planning |
The Knox County Health Department has received $80,000 in the form of a federal Planning Grant from the Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA).
Local officials say the Health Department's application was the only State of Illinois application funded.
One of the primary objectives of the Knox County Community Health Clinic partners, including the Health Department, has been to apply for Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) status for the Knox County Community Health Clinic; housed within the Health Department facility. HRSA Planning Grant dollars are allocated to recipients in order to allow then to effectively perform those activities required to complete a competitive Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) grant application.
Grant activities include, first and foremost, community needs assessments which focus on health care needs and concerns experienced by those subjected to a lack of access to health care; additionally, the establishment of a governance board for the FQHC, as well as health care and operational planning.
Receipt of FQHC status would provide multiple operational benefits for the Community Health Clinic, thus allow stronger sustainability for the Community Health Clinic. It would additionally expand access to primary and preventative health care services for all County residents; as by law, FQHCs are required to accept patients regardless of their ability to pay.
"It is vital to remember the pivotal role that primary and preventative health care plays in the lives of all Knox County citizens," says Michele Fishburn, Director of Community Health Improvement for the Knox County Health Department.
The FQHC model of health care is a pure community health clinic model. FQHC Clinics provide a high quality of health care that everyone in the community can use. "It is the epitome of access for everyone," stated Fishburn.
Overseen by HRSA, the federal Health Center System served more than 17 million medically underserved people in 2008, up from 10 million patients served in 2001. Since the economic downturn began, the health center patient population has grown by another one million people - a third of them children.
Knox County Community Health Clinic partners include the Galesburg Community Foundation, Galesburg Clinic, Galesburg Cottage Hospital and OSF Saint Mary Medical Center. For more information regarding the Knox County Community Health Clinic, please contact the Knox County Health Department at (309) 344-2224 or visit www.knoxcountyhealth.org.
(Knox County Health Department) |
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| 08 30 09 by Newsroom |
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