About Manchester Community Health Center
Manchester Community Health Center (MCHC) is a Federally Qualified Health Center, providing high-quality, preventive and primary health care. MCHC:
• Is cost-effective, comprehensive and accessible
• Provides services responsive to community needs based on a collaborative Community Needs Assessment
• Serves Manchester and surrounding towns in Hillsborough, Merrimack and Rockingham Counties
• Has clinical teams, made up of doctors, nurse practitioners or physician assistants sup ported by nurses and medical assistants
• Saves the health care system money and prevents health care cost shifting
About FQHC
A Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization that:
• Receives federal funding under Section 330 of the Public Service Act and federal malpractice protection under the Federal Tort Claims Act
• Serves a medically-underserved area or population
• Provides a comprehensive scope of preventive and primary health services to anyone, regardless of insurance status or ability to pay
• Provides a sliding-fee scale based upon income for those without insurance
SERVICES OFFERED
Primary Medical Care – For men, women and children
Comprehensive Health Services – family-oriented primary healthcare, medical case management, nutritional counseling, social service coordination, b reast/cervical cancer screening, diabetes education, dental referrals
Maternity Care – Prenatal care, childbirth education, midwifery, newborn care
Family Planning – Birth control, STD/HIV testing and counseling, pap/pelvic exams
Mental Health Care – Counseling, drug and alcohol treatment
Prescription Drug Program – Offering free and reduced-cost prescription drugs
Language Interpretation – Onsite interpretation provided in Spanish, Portuguese and Bosnia . Additional languages are contracted through local interpreters and a telephone interpretation service
• Is governed by a community-based board of directors, a 51% of whom are consumers of its services
Patients Served
MCHC provided a health care home to 5,513 patients in FY'05 through nearly 27,000 patient visits.
Patient Satisfaction
MCHC Patient Satisfaction Survey results demonstrate that:
• 96% of patients report ease of scheduling an appointment as good or very good
• 96% of patients report they would recommend MCHC to others
Managing Quality and Costs
MCHC provides medication assistance:
• Provided nearly $4 million in free or discounted prescription medications to its patients in 2005
• Maintains a federal 340B Drug Program that significantly discounts prescriptions for its pa tients
MCHC provides disease management programs:
• Assisted 1,556 patients in managing chronic illness
• Offers free, on-site diabetes support group to patients
• Provided disease management services to 491 diabetic patients and 428 patients with hy pertension
MCHC provides comprehensive prenatal and postnatal care including:
• Education to women to reduce prenatal cigarette smoking and use of alcohol and drugs
• Nutritional counseling to help women improve diets
• Identification of emerging complications of pregnancy that could compromise the health of the mother and baby
• Comprehensive prenatal and postnatal care contributing to successful birth outcomes
• During 2005, MCHC's rate for low birth weight deliveries (4.5%) was less than both the state ( 6.3%) and national rates (7.8%) for all births. The long-term cost associated with low birth weight babies is estimated in the millions. Averting the cost of one low birth weight baby provides substantial savings to the family, community, state and nation.
MCHC utilizes electronic medical records (EMR):
• Utilizes an electronic medical record system to maintain complete patient data, enhancing the quality of medical care to its patients and ensuring an integrated approach to care mana gement
MCHC strives to improve the health of its communities:
• Free breast and cervical screenings for uninsured and income-eligible women
• On-site weight loss support group
• Outreach and assistance in NH Healthy Kids enrollment
Economic Impact
MCHC favorably impacts the state's economy in terms of revenue, employment and personal income. It provides economic benefits through jobs, wages and capital investments.
MCHC serves as an economic stimulus to its communities :
• Provides millions to its local and state economies and generates jobs in local communities
• Helps to attract or retain businesses to and within its communities
• Leverages substantial state and federal funding for ever y dollar generated in local donations and patient income
Federal Study
A new federal study published in Health Services Research finds that Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) are cost-effective and reduce Emergency Room visits:
• Uninsured people living in close proximity to an FQHC are less likely to have an unmet medical need, postpone or delay seeking medical care, visit an Emergency Room, or stay in a hospital compared to other uninsured
• Uninsured people living in close proximity to an FQHC are more likely to receive primary care
Contact Persons
Edward George, Executive Director
Tony Pickard, Marketing and Development
Manchester Community Health Center
(603) 626-9500