Faith Community Health Network officially opens Faith Community Clinic, opening new opportunity for mission and service
Maura Baker
Staff Writer
Formerly Faith Community Pharmacy, now Faith Community Health Network (FCHN), officially cut the ribbon and opened the doors to its new Faith Community Clinic, July 15. Located in Newport, the clinic, which soft opened in June, offers free primary care, preventive services and lab testing — carrying the torch of FCHN’s commitment to provide “quality, compassionate care for all.”
The ribbon cutting ceremony was well attended, with FCHN executive director Aaron Broomall commenting, “I think the abundance of people that made time on their Wednesday morning to be here just shows you that our organization from the start has been built around a community of people that come together and care about people,” he said. “None of our work would be possible without the generous contributions of time and effort and insights from everybody that is here.”
“I think one of the foundations of our organization is that at the end of the day, our work comes down to people,” Mr. Broomall continued later in the ceremony. “One of the things I am most proud of, and I can’t take credit for it, our staff can, is that we always focus on the person. That there is an individual in front of us who is struggling, who is scared, who doesn’t know where to turn and they walk in our doors. And when they do, they’re greeted with a smile. They’re treated with dignity and respect. We learn their name and we learn their story because advancing somebody to health is more than just diagnosis and medication.”
Stacie Wethington, RN, the clinic’s director, looked to the future of the clinic in a later interview with the Messenger. “I’m looking forward to getting more patients from the community and being able to provide medical care for them,” she said. “We’ve talked a lot about how we’re not just physical care — we hope to touch them in lots of ways, whether that be spiritual counseling, if they desire that, but there are a lot of social determinants that we look at.”
Volunteers and staff of Community Health Clinic look beyond just physical health, according to Ms. Wethington, addressing issues such as food and housing insecurity and mental health and grief as well — using patient navigators to help guide patients to resources that they might need.
“The patients that we’ve seen have been amazing and grateful,” she said, “and the care is much, much needed. I think it’s been a blessing not just to the patients, but also to the staff and volunteers.”
To learn more about Faith Community Health Network, as well as to seek help or volunteer opportunities, visit their website online at https://fchealthnetwork.org/.
