DOWNRIVER, Mich. – For more than two decades, Downriver Community Clinic has provided free primary care to people who are working or in school but don’t have access to health insurance.
The non-profit operates out of a Henry Ford Health clinic located at 3333 Biddle Avenue in Wyandotte. Several times a month, volunteer doctors and medical students see patients at no cost, offering services that range from diagnostic testing and cancer screenings to prescription assistance.
“We’re seeing patients who didn’t know they were diabetic and found out. Most of our patients haven’t seen a physician for a number of years,” said Nancy Zack, executive director of Downriver Community Clinic.
The clinic was founded in 2005 by Dr. Chris Bush, who said he got the idea while serving as president of the medical staff at Henry Ford Wyandotte Hospital, after seeing patients come to the emergency room for primary care.
“Primary care — I’m a family doctor — is the basis for all health care. People need simple treatments, treating their blood pressure, diabetes, minor injuries, arthritis,” Bush said.
“It’s better for them to come here and get seen for their laboratory work, for blood pressure meds, diabetes meds. We write prescriptions for them, we send them for testing, and it’s all at no charge to the patient,” said Dr. Thomas McKeown, an emergency medicine physician at Henry Ford Wyandotte Hospital.
The clinic fills a gap for employed people who aren’t offered insurance through their jobs, like Alondra Monsivais of Allen Park, who stopped by the clinic for an appointment Thursday evening.
“The type of work I do is campaign work, and so it’s very temporary, and a lot of them only last 10 months and some can be as short as four,” Monsivais explained.
“Our patients make enough money to not qualify for Medicaid, so there’s nothing for them if they can’t afford the insurance,” Zack said. “Sometimes patients afford the insurance, but they can’t afford the co-pays or deductibles. We’re trying to meet patients who fall into that gap.”
Partners such as Henry Ford Health help cover the cost of diagnostic testing, and the rest of the funding comes from grants and fundraisers.
One of the non-profit’s largest fundraisers of the year will take place next Thursday, July 30th. The organization will host a benefit concert featuring the band Wisteria at Market Center Park in Southgate, starting at 5:30 p.m.
Tickets can be purchased here.
All proceeds will support the organization’s mission to make healthcare accessible to those who might be putting off care due to lack of insurance.
“They don’t need to delay primary care; they don’t need to delay seeing a physician. They can make an appointment,” Zack said. “If they’re working, or if they’re a student, 18 and older, they can come see us.”