Mansitique gets clinic for veterans
By Laura MeadMANISTIQUE - By August 2009, Schoolcraft County veterans will be able to receive mental and physical health care close to home. Manistique was one of six rural areas in the country approved for an outreach veterans clinic.
Currently, Schoolcraft County veterans in need of care have to travel either to the Iron Mountain Veterans Affairs Medical Center or outpatient clinics elsewhere. The two hour drive to Iron Mountain is the shortest distance.
The lack of close, available veterans care made Manistique a candidate area for a rural outreach clinic. A total of 17 applications for locations across the country were submitted to the Veterans Health Administration Office of Rural Health. Only six areas were chosen, including Manistique.
"We were confident Manistique would get chosen," said Larry Heers, project officer, Iron Mountain Veterans Affairs Medical Center. "Based on
the demographic data we had provided, we felt we met all the criteria outlined in the application."
Determinants included drive time, number of veterans living in the area, projected impact of the clinic, and the level of need.
According to Heers, there are approximately 1,100 veterans living in the Manistique area.
Heers said the Manistique outreach clinic will most likely be a part-time clinic, operating 20 hours a week. Basic primary care services will be available two days a week, and a psychiatrist will be available one day a week for basic mental health services.
"We're also anticipating offering telehealth, which is doing medical care through video-type equipment," added Heers.
The clinic will be operated by Iron Mountain Veterans Affairs Medical Center, in the same way as other outpatient clinics. ORH and Iron Mountain will fund the clinic through a cost sharing initiative.
Primary care services available at the clinic will emphasize disease prevention, health promotion and maintenance, history and physical examinations, and risk factor screening.
Clinic staff will include a physician, psychiatrist, registered nurse, licensed practical nurse, and an administrative support person.
Currently, a task force is working with the Great Lakes Acquisition Center to do a market survey for site location of the clinic. Heers said it has not been determined whether a building will be constructed to house the clinic, or an existing building will be used.
Heers said the goal is that the clinic will be completed no later than August of next year, but he said the timeline is contingent upon the chosen site.
