Tucked in a two-room space on the ground floor of the Robison Terrace high-rise is a medical clinic that's providing health care and more for patients in the Rose Hill Community.
Robison Terrace Care Clinic, staffed with a nurse practitioner, a nurse and a support person at the front desk, is open from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. each Tuesday and sees five to eight patients in a day.
"Five to eight patients doesn't sound like a lot, but some of these people haven't had health care in 20 years, and they have a lot of issues. It's not just health care," said Joey Pack, regional coordinator for Texarkana Care Clinic, which operates the Robison Terrace clinic.
Food, shelter and clothing are some of the concerns clinic employees hear about from patients. One patient even expressed a need for silverware.
Patient consultations are thorough, covering medical issues and other factors that could present barriers to care.
"One thing that's working really good is that personal touch," said Brandon Stenson, vice president of resident engagement for the Housing Authority of Texarkana, Texas. "Intake takes an hour to an hour and a half. It helps them gain trust, and we needed a component to help gain their trust."
The cost of medication is one barrier to care with which clinic employees try to help. Many of the high-rise residents are elderly or disabled and living on a fixed income, so even relatively inexpensive medicines can be too costly for them.
The clinic works with a pharmacy in Longview, Texas, and gets medications at cost. If that's not affordable for patients, clinic staff try accessing programs through the pharmaceutical companies for free or low-cost medications. When a medication is out of reach for a patient, Pack picks up the phone and seeks donations to cover the cost.
Opening those doors for patients is making a huge difference in their lives.
"Someone who doesn't have the resources, what do they do? They don't do anything. They let it fester," Stenson said. "This is just an opportunity for people in this neighborhood to get affordable health care."
Marchall Brown is a patient at the clinic. At a recent appointment, she found out the clinic was approved to be her primary care provider by her insurance company, and she couldn't keep the smile off her face at the news.
"It's closer, and I love them. They always make me happy and make me smile. They're very friendly here, and they really explain things to me," Brown said. "They discovered stuff I didn't know I have."
Brown said she's had a chronic cough for some time, but the medical staff at the clinic found out the cause, and now it's getting better.
One improvement from Brown's point of view is that she will have one medical provider now. She saw different doctors at the clinic where she went before.
"I'll be seeing one person now. I don't have to switch," Brown said. "They're like family in this office. When you walk in, you feel loved."
That love goes both ways.
Shonna McAdams, a nurse at the clinic, said she never envisioned having a job that made her feel so good.
"It's very different, and it's really awesome helping these people. We deal with patients that have a lot of needs other than medical. We spend time figuring out their insurance. It's easy to get close to them because you do spend more time with them to help with their needs. Referrals can be laborious and time-consuming. The medications are a big thing. You can see a doctor and they can prescribe every medication in the world you need, but if you can't afford it, it's not going to do you any good," McAdams said.
Robison Terrace Care Clinic has applied to become a Federally Qualified Health Center, which would make care more accessible for patients without insurance. Fees for patients would be based on a sliding scale depending on their income. Pack hopes to hear from that application by the end of summer.
The clinic accepts walk-ins and takes appointments.
"It's been a huge convenience for people that live in that community, and especially people who live in the high-rise, because they have so many barriers to care-lack of transportation to get to medical appointments, lack of providers in the community that accept Medicaid and Medicare, to name a few. These people were using the ER as primary health care but now they're getting on medications for their issues and they're starting to feel better. The whole Rose Hill Community has been really starting to flourish," Pack said.
For more information or an appointment, call 903-792-5924, ext. 2479 or 4148.