Facing a space squeeze in having to serve a patient population larger than the town in which it is situated, a Monroe-based health clinic is poised to expand after landing some federal dollars.
In the small town of Monroe — population less than 700 — many patients of the clinic come from surrounding rural areas. By next year, plans call for the health center to double in size and in staff.
The latest episode is here, and this time we put a lot less emphasis on the word “place” and a lot more on “sleep.”
Inside a 1,500-square-foot modular building, a long, narrow hallway that can only take in occupants single-file, leads to four exam rooms. The walls are so thin that providers often use speech-to-text technology to communicate with patients for privacy.
The Monroe Health Center is one of six community health centers managed by Benton and Linn counties. The clinic offers a variety of services, from primary care, to prescriptions, vaccines and dental care. Sometimes staff transport remote patients from more rural areas to the center.
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Congressional Rep. Val Hoyle, left, and strategy and engagement manager Christine Mosbaugh crowd inside the Monroe Health Center, which is receiving $1 million in federal funds it will use to double staff and create a new building.
The Monroe Health Center also serves as a school-based health center. More than 700 patients utilize the health center: more than 43% of patients are from Monroe; 26% are from Junction City and 14% are from Harrisburg. Some come from Corvallis, Eugene and Cheshire.
“We don’t turn people away for inability to pay or other reasons that might be barriers to health care, and we offer a sliding fee scale,” Interim Executive Director of Clinical Operations Lacey Mollel told a crowd of elected officials on Thursday, April 4.
The Monroe Health Center, a school-based health center, is receiving $1 million for a new building to house the clinic.
Next year’s expansion plans were identified as a potential candidate to receive $1 million from the U.S. House Appropriations Committee. Now, that possibility is a certainty.
“I knew what a priority it was and how hard everyone in this community and the staff people have worked to make this a reality and the impact that would have on our communities … It was an easy choice,” U.S. Rep. Val Hoyle, D-Springfield, said.
The project’s approval has put the plans in motion.
U.S. Rep Val Hoyle pays a visit to the Monroe Health Center, a school-based health center. Benton County had requested $1 million to replace the modular building.
“We have two sets of federal funds that we’re using to kind of supplement this bill,” Benton County Strategy and Engagement Manager Christine Mosbaugh said. “So we’re really hoping to be able to — we’re still in the conceptual stages — but we have to have our plans finalized before the end of this year.”
When asked how the added staff are expected to be funded in years forward, Mosbaugh said the federal dollars cover the infrastructure but staffing would be covered primarily by revenue generation.
They expect to see a gradual growth of patients; with a new facility they’d be able to serve about 1,500 patients, she said. It would be a gradual growth of about 5% a year, she said.
Some of the patients would be coming from Monroe as it continues to grow she said, but also from neighboring Alsea, Harrisburg and Junction City.
Benton County Commissioner Pat Malone, along with other Benton County commissioners, and U.S. Rep. Val Hoyle tour the small modular building that houses Monroe Health Center.
The new building will be compliant with the American with Disabilities Act and will be able to see eight patients at a time instead of four, Mosbaugh said.
“We are basically hoping to double everything,” Mosbaugh said.
Building plans detail five or six exam rooms, a larger wait room, nurses stations, a room solely devoted to recordkeeping and more open, lit spaces, according to drafted layouts and AI-generated models.
Plans are expected to be finalized in 2024, so that the new modular building can be constructed and opened for use in 2025.
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Shayla Escudero graduated University of Southern California with a Master of Science in Journalism. She covers Albany city hall and Linn County. She is passionate about telling people forward stories and shining a light on injustices. She can be reached at Shayla.Escudero@lee.net
