Teche clinic expands in Terrebonne

Two non-profit community health care centers that serve Terrebonne Parish’s medically underinsured will begin a $4.8 million facelift within the next few months.

Teche Action Clinic’s Dulac and the Houma sites are slated for renovations.

The two Terrebonne centers are part of a seven-clinic chain. The base office opened its doors in St. Mary’s city of Franklin in 1974. Other centers are located in Reserve, Edgard and Pierre Part. The Teche Action Clinic also operates a school-based clinic at West St. Mary High School in Baldwin.

Teche Action Clinic sees patients on a sliding fee-scale, based on one’s income and federal guidelines. Medicaid, Medicare and privately insured patients are among its clients.

The Dulac location – at 189 Mozart Drive – will be rebuilt from the ground up, while the Houma site – 809 W. Tunnel Blvd. – will likely relocate to Martin Luther King Boulevard, according to Teche Action Clinic CEO Dr. Gary Wiltz. The work will be funded by a $4.8 million grant recently awarded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

“We are currently serving a patient population of 5,200, and that number increases yearly,” Wiltz said. “We’re running out of space at both sites. We are extremely grateful to President Obama for recognizing the need for more health care delivery.”

Work is expected to begin at both sites within 90 days.

According to U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.), the funds were made possible by the Affordable Care Act, which was signed this spring. Landrieu was the only member of the state’s congressional delegate to vote in favor of the bill.

“Community health centers play an invaluable role in delivering affordable, quality health care throughout Louisiana,” she said. “And the Teche Action Clinics are some of the finest facilities in our state.

“Funding for these centers is an investment in Louisiana’s health care infrastructure,” she continued. “Primary and preventive care is the key to keeping our communities health and reducing reliance on the emergency room for treatment, which is more expensive and counterproductive.”

Teche offers a variety of services, including adult medicine, mental health services, pediatrics, WIC/nutrition, obstetrics and gynecological services, lab, pharmacy, dental and Medicaid enrollment.

Noted for its cutting-edge service, Wiltz said the operation has celebrated many firsts in health care delivery: it was the first Community Health Center in the state; the first to attain a residency affiliation; the first to assume a public health unit; to provide a pilot program on prevention; and the first to have a nurse practitioner and diabetic educator on staff.

The DHHS grant is a victory for all of south Louisiana, according to Rhonda Litt, director of the Louisiana Primary Care Association.

“These monies will provide better access to health care for medically indigent populations, provide employment opportunities and stimulate the Terrebonne Parish economy,” she said.

Litt said her organization and Teche still face challenges “to fill in the gaps and insure that all Louisianans have access to a medical home and a comprehensive array of high-quality primary, dental and mental health services, regardless of a persons’ ability to pay.”

Teche Action Board President Leroy Willis has a proven track record for providing health care locally.

“Our health care heroes at Teche Action Clinic work hard every day at providing people in the community a health care home so they can stay healthy and out of hospitals,” he said.

State Rep. Sam Jones (D-Franklin), a former board member, credits Wiltz’s hands-on approach and leadership for the clinic’s success thus far.

“To think, when this thing started 35 years ago, it was just a three-bedroom house acting as a medical office with three employees. Look where it is now – that’s stunning,” Jones said. “If we were a ‘for-profit operation,’ I think our net assets would be way over $150 million. And again, this whole thing was started to serve the migrant farm workers in the Franklin area.”

The Teche Action Clinc @ Houma, located on West Tunnel Boulevard, will likely move to a site along Martin Luther King Boulevard, according to Clinic CEO Dr. Gary Wiltz. CASEY GISCLAIR