community news, Peninsula Connects Lackey Women's Health Day

A Little Partnership Goes a Long Way for the Lackey Free Clinic

Posted 2/5/2013

Everyone’s heard how important partnerships are but sometimes it may be difficult to see to what extent they really matter. Women’s Health Day is a result of the collaboration of The Lackey Free Clinic and Riverside Health Systems. Twice a year, the Lackey Free Clinic dedicates an entire day to providing free breast and cervical cancer screenings. Riverside Cancer Center completes the lab work and follows up with the patients regarding results. This simple partnership has a huge impact, not only for the patients but also for the volunteers who dedicate their time and skills to provide their services.

On Wednesday, January 30, the first Women’s Health Day of 2013 was held. Patients were greeted at the Lackey Free Clinic by a number of staff and volunteers decked out in pink apparel. The doctors and nurses, staff and volunteers alike, made sure each patient received appropriate time and attention, which makes the fact that they served 60 patients that more impressive. Dr. Dennis L. Napier is one of the 2 doctors who volunteered for the event. Dr. Napier had found himself in early retirement after a car accident resulted in injuries that no longer abled him to preform surgeries.

He now volunteers at Lackey twice a month and for the Women’s Health Day. He says it is just is a nice way to give back to the community. He also pointed out that Riverside deserves credit; their generous funding helps make these services possible. Sandy Houglum, a registered nurse, has been volunteering at Lackey every Thursday for 7 years. She was also volunteering on Women’s Health Day. She explains that as a military wife, she didn’t work as a nurse when they were moving from town to town. Now that her husband has retired from the Air Force, she has found that volunteering her services lets her get back into nursing without having to work weekends or evenings. Sandy is just one of the 30 nurses that take care of Lackey’s patients. As an added touch that expresses the Clinic’s thoughtfulness, each patient received a red rose before leaving.

Sitting in an office with her Women’s Health Day rose, Erica recalls the days when the Lackey Free Clinic was a small group of nurses offering to test blood pressure for fellow church members in the basement of Rising Sun Baptist Church. That was 17 years ago. With a building currently being expanded, The Lackey Free Clinic, located in York County, continues to grow. The Lackey Free Clinic provides services for patients who do not have insurance. Erica, a current patient of Lackey, helps clarify the diverse group and the number of reasons why free clinics are so important. Despite having a job that offers health insurance, the cost of the policy would take the majority of her paycheck and the remainder would not be sufficient for even average costs of living. This is an all too familiar situation for those that do not have insurance; some individuals go without health insurance because the price of the policy is affected by pre-existing conditions.

Erica is a single mother and as she continues to work, she also pursues other ways to better her situation. Not only has she obtained a CDL License in order to be a school bus driver, but she is also diligently working to earn an Associate of Applied Science, Early Childhood Education Development, while completing the Early Childhood Development Assistant certificate program at Thomas Nelson Community College.

If the Lackey Free Clinic were not able to provide Erica with medical services, her only other option would be to rely on an emergency room. Considering the cost of emergency rooms, it is no wonder that people in similar situations may go without receiving regular medical care. Because Lackey is a nonprofit organization and relies on the generosity of its donors, they have to carefully manage how many patients they are able to provide services for. Erica acknowledges how blessed she is to be one of Lackey’s patients; she maintains a positive and inspiring attitude, finding herself including in her prayers, “I know you would not put me in this situation if you knew I could not handle the job”.

By working together, the Lackey Free Clinic and Riverside Health Systems are able to provide essential screenings to women who may otherwise go without. The Women’s Health Day is just one example of the potential results that come from partnerships. The Lackey Free Clinic is appreciative for all of the wonderful partnerships and generous donations that have helped them reach more people than they could have ever imagined 17 years ago. These relationships and coordinated efforts continue to benefit care givers and receivers alike.

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