PORT ANGELES — Volunteers in Medicine of the Olympics clinic officials expect to nearly double the number of patients seen this year compared with last year, the clinic’s executive director said Monday.
Larry Little, who spoke to about 70 people at the Port Angeles Regional Chamber of Commerce’s weekly luncheon, said the clinic last year saw 717 patients.
This year, he said, VIMO expects 1,416 patients.
The clinic at 909 Georgiana St. sees uninsured and under-insured patients for non-emergency care to help those who would otherwise use Olympic Medical Center’s emergency room for primary care — or delay necessary care because of financial concerns.
Little’s prediction is based on rising unemployment — which leads to more visits to clinics like VIMO — as well as rising numbers of homeless people, he said.
More donations
He said the community has been good to the clinic, but it still needs to raise donations for the challenging years ahead.
“The United Way kept the funding about the same. The city of Port Angeles had to decrease a little bit, but then Clallam County came in and increased their support,” Little said.
The total operating budget for 2008 was about $150,000, he said.
“That just isn’t very much money to do what we’re doing,” he said.
“One of my jobs is to make sure we operate on a balanced budget, and we’re doing fine as far as keep on doing what we are already doing, but I feel strongly that we have to move forward to progress and do more.
“If I had another, say, $50,000, we could provide exponentially more than we do right now.”
Mostly volunteer
The clinic runs primarily on volunteers with three paid part-time staff members, Little said.
Unemployment figures in Clallam County rose to 11.3 percent in March.
“Those numbers are huge,” Little said.
“When we think about the fact that insurance is tied to employment — 60 percent of insured people get it through their job — that is really going to impact us.”
About 388, or about half, of the people who went to the clinic last year said they would have gone to the emergency room for care otherwise, Little said.
“Hospitals are mandated to care for people,” he said.
“It costs about $1,000 to the taxpayers when someone goes to the emergency room, whereas for us it costs about $58 per visit.
“The question is: What would you rather pay?”
The clinic is currently open on Monday from noon to 5 p.m. and Thursday from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. by appointment only.
“We are only open for partial days on two days out of the week, but there is so much more we could be doing if we had the funding,” he said.
“We have lots of room that we’re able to expand, and we are not being run at capacity.”
For more information or to donate, visit www.vimoclinic.org or phone Little at 360-457-4431.
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Reporter Paige Dickerson can be reached at 360-417-3535 or at paige.dickerson@peninsuladailynews.com.
