The Corner Health Center, a provider of medical services to young people ages 12-21, recently received $63,784 in federal grant money.
Monday morning, U.S. Congressman John Dingell, who fought Republican efforts to repeal the $95 million in grants to 278 school-based programs, visited The Corner at 47 N. Huron St., to meet the staff. The function of the award was examined in a sit-down discussion.
Executive Director Ellen Clement said 12 grants went to clinics across Michigan simply for technology expenses, not administrative costs.
Last year, 27 percent of the non-profit organization’s revenues came from fees for service. Government and organization grants funded 22 percent. On the expense side, 83 percent was spent in program services and 10 percent in management. Roughly 1,450 people were served.
The most expensive project will be purchasing an electronic medical records system by 2014, which will coordinate with digital scales and electronic vital signs monitors for more accurate readings of blood pressure and pulse. While the award money will
cover the scales and monitors, the records system will not.
“We really want to get [the records system],” Kate Guzman, clinic director and
registered nurse, said. “We’ll have to spend a lot of time scanning in every chart to make it electronic; it’s a whole new world, but it will really come in handy.”
Guzman said there is need for an assortment of kitchen necessities: a dishwasher, double oven range, refrigerator and a few more tables and chairs.
These will make it possible for the clinic to address the childhood obesity epidemic via cooking and nutrition classes. Teaching their clients how to make baby food is one of several ideas.
“What we really want to draw attention to are the healthy choices people can make just by going to the local farmer’s market,” Guzman said. “But they might not be interested if they don’t know what a certain vegetable tastes like, or what it even is. So, a taste sampling could be really beneficial for them.”
Next on the list of updates the grant will fund is the building’s elevator motor. Although The Corner was renovated and expanded to three different storefronts and 13 exam rooms in 2009, the elevator’s motor and hydraulics system need to be replaced. After repairs, the elevator will continue to carry patients throughout the three-story building, originally constructed in the 1880s.
Other additions the grant will fund include a water cooler for the waiting room, a 60-inch flat screen monitor to make web calls and a DVD player to show educational videos.
The center includes a finished basement for volunteer work and holds a food pantry preserved as a free emergency resource to the public. Lately, the staff has been stocking the shelves themselves due to contract renewal issues.
“This is why we tell people you’d get everything and more here than at a family practice,” Guzman said. “There are so many barriers, like transportation, that can limit a person from coming here and getting help. So, anything we can provide on site is a benefit, like the pantry, for example. Surprisingly, it’s used by a lot of people.”
Isles of clothing and family care items – such as baby wipes and blankets – are also stored in the basement. Anything clients buy in The Corner Store counts toward a point system, cutting down the cost for future purchases.
The store and pantry are not covered by the grant, but the staff said they’re equally important assets to strengthen relationships with patients, especially moms-to-be.
The clinic originally opened in response to Ypsilanti’s high teen pregnancy rate 30 years ago. Since then, the city’s rate has lowered through careful prevention, according to Clement.
Still, members of the center take pride in paying close attention to their pregnant patients.
“If a girl misses an appointment, we’ll call her mother, sister or friend,” Guzman stated.
With the technological improvements funded by the grant, the clinic wants to continue helping patients help themselves in a confidential youth-friendly environment without having to worry about insurance. Monday, Dingell said he remains impressed by the clinic.
“This establishment is a very important element in health around here,” Dingell said. “There’s a big misunderstanding about the money in some people, but that’s why I worked hard to progress.”
