School of Nursing Holds Open House Events at Community Health Centers

During the month of December, the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center (TTUHSC) School of Nursing Larry Combest Community Health and Wellness Center and Abilene Community Health Center held open house events in their communities to raise awareness about the services provided in the nurse-managed federally qualified health centers.

In Lubbock, the Larry Combest Community Health and Wellness Center open house included a ribbon cutting ceremony with representatives the Lubbock Chamber of Commerce to celebrate the official opening of the newly constructed portion of the building. The Abilene Community Health Center open house also held a ribbon cutting ceremony during the center’s grand opening, giving many Abilene residents a first look at the new center.

TTUHSC School of Nursing Dean Michael Evans, Ph.D., R.N., FAAN, explained how the two centers relate to one another in their establishment.

“The federally qualified health center in Lubbock, the Larry Combest Community Health and Wellness Center, gave us the opportunity to open the Abilene Community Health Center as a satellite center,” Evans said. “It is much easier to create a satellite of a federally qualified health center than it is to go through the rigorous regulations to establish a brand new one as we did several years ago for the one in Lubbock.”

The new center in Abilene is a resource the community has looked forward to for some time. During the grand opening, Abilene’s mayor, Norm Archibald, said that the Abilene community and its leaders enthusiastically supported TTUHSC’s establishment of a federally qualified health center and worked to make it possible.

“I’ve always thought that Abilene was a community that can and does come together to do something for the common good, and this facility is one of those many projects,” Archibald said. “For the city, this is a great step forward. This is progress to be able to provide access to health care.”

The two health centers both work to provide access to comprehensive health services to those in need, reduce or eliminate health disparities among high-risk populations and integrate student clinical experiences and faculty practices in effective delivery of health care services in their respective communities. As nurse-managed health centers, the two facilities are strengthened in completing their mission by the nursing students who work and learn within the centers. TTUHSC nursing students, also, gain unique clinical experience by serving patients in an environment that offers a broad range of services, including diabetes education, pregnancy and women’s health care and primary care.

Also unique are the financial assistance options available to eligible patients at both centers. Linda McMurry, DNP, R.N., NEA-BC, executive director of the TTUHSC Larry Combest Community Health and Wellness Center, explained.

“A sliding fee scale is available for income eligible patients,” McMurry said. “No one will be turned away due to inability to pay.”

Visitors at both open houses learned about the services available at the Larry Combest Community Health and Wellness Centers and the Abilene Community Health Center and how they could get access to financial assistance. For some, learning that care is accessible may be the first step to a healthier life.