The new Tazewell Community Health facility is on target to be finished this fall with a new dental facility, a much needed resource for the residents of Tazewell County.
The new dental facility will feature patient access to three new dental staff, which include a dentist, a hygienist, and a dental assistant. This access will be services that are offered on a sliding-scale fee to qualifying patients. This new building will mean that residents of Tazewell will have better access to affordable health care, provided in clean, modern facilities with well-equipped, state-of-the-art technologies and highly-qualified providers. The addition of onsite dental services will enhance access to affordable dental care for the service area and target populations, resulting in a decrease in both dental and periodontal disease.
Ground was broken on the site on October 19, 2017, then the building was demolished during the latter part of the year. Currently, the building foundation has been laid with concrete poured to make the flooring. The new facility is set to be completed in fall 2018. A date for the facility opening will be set following the completion.
Tazewell County has a significant low-income and underserved population and access to healthcare is an important component of addressing their needs. The county is ranked 118 out of 133 in health status and outcomes in the entire Commonwealth.
“This project is such an important project for the residents of Tazewell County. We at Southwest Virginia Community Health Systems feel passionately about providing affordable and accessible healthcare for this area because of their current limited access, and we, as an organization are happy to meet the unmet needs,” Bryan Haynes, Chief Executive Officer of Southwest Virginia Community Health Systems.
Without the financial backing of numerous agencies, this project would not be possible. Currently, the financial backing of the project is a $1 million grant from the Health Resources & Services Administration, $10,000 from The Carilion Foundation, and a 1:1 match grant of $100,000 from the Virginia Health Care Foundation. For every $1 donated, the amount of this grant is doubled up to $100,000. The Thompson Foundation also had donated an additional $50,000 for the financial support of the facility.
Donations are still be sought and needed from the local community for the cost of the facility.
Naming opportunities for the new facility will also be available for all 34 rooms of Tazewell Community Health, along with the opportunity to name the building as a whole. Prices for this opportunity will range from $15,000 up to $1 million.
PLAN OF ACTION FOR TAZEWELL
In order in better serve our current Tazewell patients as well as make room for more of the medically unserved, we are building new larger service delivery site to replace Tazewell Community Health’s current building. The new site will increase our scope of services to include dental, pediatric, optometry, and radiology services and will employ eight additional health care professionals. The total square footage of the current building is approximately 3,600 sq. ft. The proposed project will increase square footage to 9,732 sq. ft. and the number of exam rooms will increase from 8 to 14. This new building will allow us to meet more needs of the community through facility appropriateness and efficiency, increased capacity to provide services, and increasing the scope of services available to patients compared to what is currently available at our existing site.
MEDICAL SERVICES OFFERED AT NEW TAZEWELL SITE
Primary Care with Integrated Behavioral Health
Pediatrics
Optometry
Dental
