Clinic Information:
- The N.E.W. Clinic at NWTC is a teaching medical clinic serving uninsured and underinsured patients, while participating NWTC students receive the highest quality education.
- The clinic opened July 10, 2006.
- The clinic is located in the Health Sciences Center at NWTC.
- Patients who are uninsured or underinsured and meet financial eligibility guidelines are treated at the clinic at no or minimum cost to them.
- The clinic is open Monday – Thursday 7:30 am – 6:00 pm. Patients are seen on a 24-hour appointment schedule. Patients call 920-498-5436 for an appointment.
- If the Green Bay Public Schools or the NWTC Green Bay campus closes due to bad weather, the clinic will be closed.
- The full-time healthcare provider is a masters prepared, board certified Family Nurse Practitioner.
- The clinic is also staffed with a full-time Medical Assistant, a full-time Medical Laboratory Technician, a full-time Receptionist/Interpreter, and a half-time Clinic Coordinator. A Medical Case Manager and a Health Benefits Access Coordinator are available weekly on a limited basis.
- The state-of-the-art clinic utilizes MISYS Tiger software for scheduling of patient appointments and MISYS Electronic Medical Record (EMR) software for documentation of patient information and care.
- The clinic provides on-site labwork, assistance by a case manager in applying for new and reordered medications through pharmaceutical assistance programs and assistance by a health benefits access coordinator in determining eligibility for various governmental and other agency programs.
- When specialty care cannot be provided on-site, referrals can be made to participating providers.
- The Clinic Coordinator can be reached at (920) 498-5512.
Patient Impact:
- A total of 7488 patients have been seen from the clinic’s inception in July of 2006 through the 1st quarter of 2009.
- There were 3112 Total Patient Visits in 2008, an increase of 25% over 2007.
- 18 % of the clinic patients in 2008 were Spanish speaking.
- 75 % of the clinic patients seen in 2008 were residents of Green Bay.
- 56 % of the clinic patients seen in 2008 were employed (Includes full-time, part-time, seasonal, self employed and students)
- 35 % of the clinic patients seen in 2008 were unemployed. .
- 63% of N.E.W. Clinic at NWTC patients surveyed in February of 2009 said that if the clinic services had not been available, they would have gone to a hospital emergency room
- 97% of patients surveyed said the N.E.W. Clinic at NWTC met their immediate health care needs.
- Economic changes and welfare reforms have left many poor families without health coverage.
- The percentage of uninsured is typically two to three times higher among minority groups than among the majority population. The minority population in Brown County has increased over 400% during the past decade, increasing the need for quality, cost-effective care.
- Since early detection and monitoring of many conditions can prevent a costly medical crisis, access to primary care is critical in allowing the uninsured to move from poverty to a self-sustaining life and could reduce health care costs for the entire community.
Student Impact:
- The N.E.W. Clinic at NWTC provided clinical practice for 9 different NWTC Programs in the last year. These include the following:
- Respiratory Therapist Program students provided Respiratory Care/ Asthma Clinics.
- Associate Degree Nursing (ADN) Program students provided Pedicure Clinics.
- Associate Degree Nursing (ADN) Program students assisted with Women’s Health Clinics.
- Associate Degree Nursing (ADN) Program students assisted our Nurse Practitioner with patient care
- Clinical Laboratory Technician Program students assisted our Medical Laboratory Technician.
- Medical Assistant Program students provided patient education by developing a bulletin board for our waiting room.
- Health Care Business Services, Health Information Technology and Office Assistant Program students gained valuable experience and provided service in customer relations, office management and computer applications.
- Hands-on experience caring for patients is required for graduation, for state licensure and for the development of excellent health care skills.
- Many Health Sciences programs have had long waiting lists because there weren't enough clinical opportunities to accommodate all qualified applicants. The N.E.W. Clinic at NWTC increases clinical opportunities.
- Student education is enriched by exposure to patients of diverse backgrounds.
Facility facts:
- The clinic began with a $491,032 federal grant sponsored by U.S. Senator Herb Kohl, provided through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
- Northeast Wisconsin residents voted to expand the campus in 2001,to include a large Health Sciences complex, in large part because of the projected critical shortage of health care professionals to care for an aging population.
- Ongoing financial support for daily operations comes from Bellin, St Mary’s and St. Vincent Hospitals. In addition, these three hospitals provide on a rotating basis no or reduced cost services to qualifying N.E.W Clinic patients, such as labwork, X-ray and other diagnostic studies.
Community impact facts:
- Since the federal grant was awarded, private donors have contributed over $1 million.
- The shortage of new health care workers to replace retiring baby boomers is expected to push costs up and threaten care nationwide. By producing more graduates, clinic partners hope to address health costs and enhance future care for everyone.
- Rural areas north of Brown County have few options for low cost/free medical care. The N.E.W. Clinic at NWTC gives special attention to communicating the availability of these health services to rural areas north of Green Bay.
Contact the N.E.W. Clinic at NWTC: Phone: (920) 498-5436
For additional programs and phone numbers, please visit the main
N.E.W. Community Clinic web site at www.newcommunityclinic.org