CLEARLAKE, Calif. – On Monday the usually busy lobby of the Veterans Affairs Clinic in Clearlake featured a celebratory theme to mark one of the facility's milestones.
It's been five years since the long-cherished dream of many local veterans came true in the form of a VA clinic in Lake County, and today the facility is thriving and looking at growing significantly in the years to come.
Getting the clinic in the county took years of effort, but when it finally opened at 15145 Lakeshore Drive in November 2010 there were big hopes that it would answer the need of thousands of veterans who call Lake County home.
From all indications, it has done just that, and also surpassed the service levels anticipated by the San Francisco VA Health Care System, which oversees the clinic.
“We exceeded all of their expectations about what our growth rate would be,” said clinic director Carol Brown.
Less than three months after opening, the clinic already had served 500 patients, Brown said.
Today, the clinic – open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. – serves just under 2,000 veterans annually, she said.
For its service to the community, the clinic received a Stars of Lake County Community Service Award for nonprofit organization of the year in 2013.
In addition to traditional medical appointments and health education for patients, Brown said the clinic offers a telemedicine service that allows it to connect with more than 50 other clinics.
More than 100 vets now take part in the clinic's telehealth program. Brown said the program provides real-time monitoring of health conditions like diabetes, allowing clinic staff to check in with patients immediately – without patients having to come into the clinic.
She said the clinic tries to offer as many services as possible locally so vets don't have to travel out of county to larger facilities, such as those in San Francisco.
And while veterans may still have to travel to San Francisco for some services and programs, Brown said they can get followup care at the clinic.
Brown, a registered nurse, is a “charter member” of the staff, having been among the eight original employees who worked at the clinic when it opened in the fall of 2010.
“I started out as the only nurse,” she said.
Now, five years later, she's overseeing a staff that has quadrupled in size.
Brown said the staff today includes doctors, nurses, psychiatrists, social workers and front line office personnel. Approximately 32 out of a total of 38 positions are filled.
When the clinic opened, it had just one doctor. Today it has three physician positions. Dr. Anna Brou and Dr. Kirk Andrus are on staff, and with the recent retirement of the third doctor, Brown said they are now actively recruiting to fill that third position.
While the clinic recruits a new physician, for the first time a waiting list has been implemented. “It's not what any of us want,” said Brown of not being able to take new patients right now.
In the meantime, sister clinics in Ukiah and Santa Rosa are taking new patients, and veterans also can find a local health care provider and the VA will pay for it, Brown said.
As for what is ahead in the next five years, Brown said, “We're already looking at how we're going to expand out.”
The building currently has a 10,000-square-foot footprint. Brown said, ideally, they would like to double that, and have begun discussing a potential expansion with the building's owner.
In addition to adding more exam rooms, key areas considered for expansion are audiology and pharmacy, as the Clearlake VA clinic is one of the few clinics of its type that doesn't have pharmacy services available on site, Brown said.
To find out more about the clinic and services, or to volunteer, go to www.sanfrancisco.va.gov/ .
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