CHI Franciscan Opens New Bremerton Family Medicine Clinic
CHI Franciscan Family Medicine Clinic increases critical access to high-quality primary care for Bremerton and its surrounding communities
BREMERTON, Wash., July 1, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- CHI Franciscan Family Medicine Clinic is proud to welcome its first patient today. The new 27,000 sq. ft. primary care facility offers 30 exam rooms, a state-of-the-art Academic Conference center, and a team of over 60 medical professionals—including 24 medical residents from St. Michael Medical Center's Northwest Washington Family Medicine Residency program. The clinic will provide comprehensive outpatient care including obstetrics, pediatrics, geriatrics, sports health and addiction treatment.
To keep patients and staff safe during the pandemic, all CHI Franciscan locations, including the clinic, are taking extra safety precautions. Each location is screening every person before entering a facility, universally masking, limiting the number of visitors, and practicing physical distancing.
"As we continue to experience one of the most challenging times we have faced in health care, expanding access to safe, high-quality care is more important than ever for our communities," said Ketul J. Patel, CHI Franciscan chief executive officer. "We are proud that the CHI Franciscan Family Medicine Clinic will be home to the single largest collection of primary care providers on the peninsula, offering patients comprehensive outpatient care close to home."
The new clinic will address the region's growing health care needs and primary care physician shortage. According to a 2019 Kaiser Family Foundation study, only 25 percent of Washington state's primary care needs are being met. Furthermore, in the next decade, the Kitsap Peninsula will experience significant population growth. To meet the urgent demand for physicians, CHI Franciscan launched the Northwest Washington Family Medicine Residency program in 2018. The program celebrates full capacity this year as it welcomes its third class of residents. The program will graduate its first class of residents in 2021. With a full complement of 24 physicians now in residency, the clinic is expected to see 25,000-30,000 visits each subsequent year.
"As our great City prepares for unprecedented growth, we appreciate CHI Franciscan's continued investment in maintaining a health care presence in Bremerton," said City of Bremerton Mayor Greg Wheeler. "This clinic will help ensure our residents get access to good health care, including those who are low-income, uninsured and disabled in our community. We are pleased to be celebrating the opening of the clinic in Bremerton with CHI Franciscan."
CHI Franciscan is also addressing the long-term needs of the Kitsap Peninsula through its half-billion-dollar investment to expand St. Michael Medical Center in Silverdale. The state-of-the-art facility will be an integrated, sustainable part of the community it serves. The new facility is on track to open later this year.
About CHI Franciscan
CHI Franciscan is a Catholic nonprofit health system based in Tacoma, Washington. One of the largest health systems in Washington state, CHI Franciscan is comprised of more than 12,500 physicians, advanced practice clinicians, nurses, and staff that provide expert, compassionate medical care at 10 acute care hospitals and more than 220 primary and specialty care clinics throughout the greater Puget Sound. As part of CommonSpirit Health, and as a member of every community we serve, we bring together medicine, kindness, respect, and compassion to help people truly begin to heal. We honor our values and legacy by investing in our communities. In 2019 we provided $197 million in community benefits, including free, subsidized, and reduced cost health care and programs. We are also the only Washington State hospital system that accepts an unlimited number of Medicaid patients. Follow CHI Franciscan on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/CHIFranciscan, Twitter @CHIFranciscan and Instagram @chi.franciscan or go to our website for information www.chifranciscan.org.
SOURCE CHI Franciscan
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