Safety-net clinic grows to catch more

Health - A center gets $600,000 to aid migrant workers and the uninsured

ESMERALDA BERMUDEZ

The Oregonian

HILLSBORO -- Virginia Garcia Memorial Health Center plans to double its aid to migrant and seasonal workers to 6,000 patients a year, with help from a $600,000 federal grant.

The money comes at a time when the health center -- which caters to low-income residents in Washington and Yamhill counties -- is about to embark on the most significant expansion in its 31-year history. The grant is part of $1.7 million in federal money Oregon recently received for use at four health centers, the second-highest amount given to any state, after California.

In the coming year, the Cornelius-based center will triple the size of its operations in Hillsboro and McMinnville by opening larger primary care clinics with expanded prenatal care. It will also add pharmacies, dental clinics and mental health services. The center also runs a Beaverton site.

While the federal grant will go toward helping farmworkers, the center's growth reflects an increasing need in the two counties, where about 130,000 residents are underinsured or uninsured, said Liz MacDonell, executive director of the Virginia Garcia Memorial Foundation.

The center traditionally has helped Latinos, but in recent years, its low-cost services have attracted a growing number of Anglos and other immigrant groups struggling to secure care.

"If we worked 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year, we still wouldn't be able to meet the need," said Dr. Evan Saulino, who works in the Hillsboro office.

Clinics expand focus

Three other safety-net clinics -- serving Lane County, Medford and Hermiston -- also received part of the $10 million farmworker grant recently issued by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

"For us to receive this much money is not common," said Alberto Moreno, who works for the state of Oregon as a migrant health coordinator, adding that there are about 174,000 migrant and seasonal workers statewide. "But we've done extraordinarily well and advocated quite well for this community."

While the population of migrant and seasonal workers remains steady, many safety-net clinics such as Virginia Garcia are expanding their focus to include other ethnic groups and provide service in languages other than Spanish.

Indigenous languages from Mexico are spoken more often at different sites. Also, in Hood River, the Clinica Del Carino has moved from a Latino patient base to one that's more than 50 percent Anglo. And in Beaverton, Virginia Garcia sees a mix of patients who are Vietnamese, Chinese, Somali and Russian.

In Hillsboro, the center plans to use the grant to hire three additional doctors and more medical assistants, nurses and outreach workers.

Once a grass-roots operation run out of a three-car garage, Virginia Garcia now has an annual budget of $20.7 million and sees 30,000 patients a year. Funding comes from the Oregon Health Plan, federal sources and a mix of donations, patient and insurance payments.

"Good to us"

Nancy Andrade and Patricia Andrade, who are not related by birth, were among the center's patients this year. The sisters-in-law, both 24, are expanding their family with their husbands, Jose Garcia and Antonio Garcia, respectively. Both men have worked for more than five years in a Forest Grove nursery and lack health insurance.

Three years ago, when Nancy and Jose had their first child, Yenifer, they counted on Virginia Garcia for pre- and postnatal care.

On Friday, four days after their second child, Jose Angel, was born, community health nurse Dawn Daniels from the Cornelius clinic visited the couple to weigh the baby, discuss -- in Spanish -- follow-up care, the risk of post-partum depression and the importance of a support network.

"They've always been very good to us, helped us quickly and at prices we can deal with," Jose Garcia said.

Next month, Patricia and Antonio expect to give birth to their first child with help from the health center.

"This expansion is going to allow us to do more outreach to the most vulnerable people, many who face great barriers when it comes to getting care," said Gil Munoz, Virginia Garcia's executive director.