Taking care of its community

A little clinic in Irving is taking on big problems in its efforts to help the needy.

The Irving Interfaith Clinic stays busy during its limited hours: Patient visits have quadrupled since it was founded in January 2006.

"The Irving Interfaith Clinic is one of the best and most innovative health care offerings in our community," said Burnell Stehman, who's on the board of the clinic and the Irving Healthcare Foundation.

Founded by Lilly Juarez, the clinic serves low-income and uninsured Irving residents. Doctors and nurses donate their services.

"I worked at a clinic in Arlington and saw there was a need for one here in Irving," said Ms. Juarez, a former pre-med student who serves as executive director of the clinic. She plans to continue classes and become a doctor.

Dr. Robert Israel serves as medical director. He is one of 10 Irving-based internal medicine and specialty physicians who volunteer at the clinic.

Although the doctors see only adult patients, they hope to secure more financial support to treat children.

Donations of medical equipment, supplies and funding help the clinic operate. The Wachovia Foundation recently awarded the clinic a $5,000 grant for prescription assistance. Citi Cards has also been a major contributor, Ms. Juarez said.

Although the clinic is not equipped to handle emergency care, other services are available.

"The clinic is a great place for needy patients to turn to when they have minor or chronic illnesses," Mr. Stehman said. "The clinic can also provide limited prescription assistance."

If a patient has a chronic illness, such as diabetes or asthma, the clinic's staff can help the patient apply for long-term prescription assistance from pharmaceutical companies and through Dallas County services.

Ms. Juarez said the clinic just started offering dental services.

"We hope to offer dental care at least two days per month," Ms. Juarez said.

While Irving just received a Parkland satellite clinic, the Irving Interfaith Clinic helps by offering evening hours from 4 to 8 p.m. Thursdays and morning hours one Saturday a month. With the growing number of patient visits, the clinic recently added two Wednesday evenings per month for follow-up consultations.

According to John Drake, foundation president, the philanthropically funded clinic had 113 patient visits in its first 10 months. In the first 10 months of 2007, that number increased to 516 visits.

"The increased patient usage this year lets those of us affiliated with the clinic know that community awareness has grown," Mr. Stehman said. "We're so pleased that donor support has grown, too."

The clinic is one beneficiary of the Irving Healthcare Foundation, a public charity that raises funds and disburses grants to create a healthier community.

The foundation's other beneficiaries include Baylor Medical Center at Irving, the city's only nonprofit hospital, and Our Children's House at Irving, a therapy and child-care facility for children with special needs.

Photo introduced:

The Parkland Memorial Hospital complex was translonncd with the design and construction of a new building and major renovations. The building program changed the hospital s image from institutional to progressive, reflecting Parkland s leadership role in the provision ol cutting-edge health care. The expansion and renovation program consists of a new nine-story patient care tower housing 20-1 beds, including three intensive tare units. A separate 38-bed surgical intensive care unit doubles as a triangular canopy over die new hospital entrance. The seven -- story outpatient clinic-houses an addiiional S3 treatment rooms as well as laboratory, pharmacy and radiology space. The expansion also includes ancillary services: a central laboratory, radiology, general stores, receiving, dietary, laundry, central supply, medical records, and physical medicine.

Additional information :

From www.dallasnews.com:
All five residents spend the entire year at Parkland Hospital on five different services, four of which include large numbers of orthopaedic.
Parkland Memorial Hospital is the primary teaching institution of The University of Texas Southwestern Medical School and is often rated among the best.
Residency, Massachusetts General Hospital, Parkland Memorial Hospital, Dallas. Internship, Massachusetts.
Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas , Texas is a fairly famous institution and. Parkland Hospital offers indigent care to Dallas County.
In terms of clinical experience, you cannot top the kind of hands on experience you will get at a major charity hospital.