Greater Portland Health is a remarkable medical practice committed to offering everyone in our communities high-quality, affordable and respectful care. Established in 2009 as the Portland Community Health Center, we now serve over 12,600 people across our 12 locations in Portland, South Portland, and Westbrook.
We provide a greater range of care than many practices, including primary medical, behavioral health and oral health. We also partner with the regions finest specialists to care for your whole self, for your whole life.
Nuestra visin es la de una comunidad sana, donde todos tengan acceso a servicios de salud integrados, culturalmente inclusivos, asequibles y de alta calidad, que promuevan el bienestar fsico y emocional.
Makanisi na biso ezali ya lisanga ya kolongono malamu esika moto nyonso azali na nzela ya kozwa lisungi ya kolongonu ya nzoto ya bato ya bikolo nionso, ya talo malamu mpe ya kitoko oyo ezali kosunga bobateli nzoto kolongono mpe na kimia ya makanisi.
Notre vision envisage une communaut en bonne sant dans laquelle tous les membres ont accs des services de soins intgrs, inclusifs sur le plan culturel, abordables et de haute qualit promouvant le bien-tre physique et affectif.
Temos como viso uma comunidade saudvel onde todas as pessoas tenham acesso a servios de assistncia mdica integrados, inclusivos do ponto de vista cultural, baratos e de alta qualidade para promover o bem-estar fsico e emocional.
We are proud to be a designated Federally Qualified Health Center and recognized by the National Committee for Quality Assurance as a Level-3 Patient-Centered Medical Home. This designates a way of organizing primary care that emphasizes care coordination and communication, enabling us to provide the highest level of care.
GPH works with a variety of partners to continually address how to improve access to services and address barriers for our communities of focus. These collaborations include working with the Greater Portland Refugee/Immigrant Health Care Collaborative to engage with providers in Portland who have a special focus on the needs of immigrant/refugee people living in Maine, and working with the Greater Portland Addiction Collaborative (GPAC) to collaborate and increase the availability of high quality treatment and integration of services for patients with substance use disorder. These types of collaborations augment our core services to continually engage with the community, to have an open dialogue, and address emergent and persistent barriers to services.
This health center receives HHS funding and has federal Public Health Service (PHS)deemed status with respect to certain health or health-related claims, including medical malpractice claims, for itself and its covered individuals.Greater Portland Health and its employees are covered by the Federal Tort Claims Act.
Greater Portland Health, a Federally Qualified Health Center, opened its doors in 2009 with the name Portland Community Health Center. Originally under the City of Portland, Greater Portland Health was the culmination of a comprehensive needs assessment and planning process that took place in the mid-2000s involving local hospital systems and healthcare nonprofits. Through establishing a health center we aimed to expand access to health services, improve service integration and coordination, and reduce the reliance on the areas hospital emergency departments. By 2013, we were serving over 3,000 patients and were able to launch as a fully independent 501c3 organization.
Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) are federally funded community health centers that provide primary care services in underserved communities. As an FQHC, Greater Portland Health is committed to ensuring all members of the community have access to health services regardless of their ability to pay. We offer a sliding fee scale program and we accept MaineCare, Medicare and commercial insurances. In addition to funding from the federal government, a significant part of our funding is revenue from patient visits. Currently, for every insured patient who receives care at Greater Portland Health, we are able to provide care to two people who do not have insurance.
At Greater Portland Health, we provide comprehensive pediatric and adult healthcare services for all ages. Our services include: medical, behavioral health, oral health, substance use treatment, chronic and infectious disease management, and psychiatric services. We also provide oral health services in all Portland Schools.
As a federally funded entity, we must meet rigorous requirements and quality measures to ensure we provide the highest quality care that is responsive to patient needs. We are recognized by the National Committee for Quality Assurance as a Level 3 Patient Centered Medical Home. Additionally, our organization is guided by a Board of Directors consisting of a patient majority and we often collect patient and staff input ensuring we provide patient-centered care.
In order to meet the needs of Greater Portlands diverse residents, we have had to grow quickly. Greater Portland Health currently serves over 12,300 patients, with an average of 200 new patients registering for care each month. We have expanded to 9 service locations, including one health care for the homeless program, two public housing sites, and four school-based health centers. Five new sites, 100 new employees, and over 9,000 new patients have been added over the last four years. Growth is projected to continue in the next three years as we continue to expand our services and innovative programs.
During this period of growth, our service site locations were chosen to address transportation and access barriers as much as possible. Our first site, 180 Park Avenue, is within walking distance of the Citys most densely populated, low-income, underserved communities, including the Citys main shelter hub, which is located 1/2 mile, a ten-minute walk, from the health center. Health centers at the Riverton Park and Franklin Towers public housing sites were added in 2013 and 2014 to facilitate access to care for people living farther away from our Park Avenue location.
In January 2014, GPH expanded its services to individuals and families experiencing homelessness, with a location within the shelter hub at 63 Preble Street. In 2015, a location was added in South Portland at 100 Brickhill Avenue prompting the name change from Portland Community Health Center to Greater Portland Health to reflect our expanded service area. The new South Portland site allowed for improved access for the significant low-income population in that neighborhood separated from downtown Portland and difficult for pedestrians to access. In addition, Greater Portland Health began operating health centers in the three Portland public high schools and King Middle School in 2016.
Many vulnerable populations in the greater Portland area face barriers to accessing healthcare. Therefore, efforts have been made to make it easier for patients to get the care they need. Across our service delivery sites, we offer care six days a week, with after-hours care. We offer interpretation services and our team includes multi-lingual staff members to better serve those whose first language is not English. Furthermore, our services are offered on a sliding fee scale discount program for all patients at or below 200% of current DHHS Federal Poverty Guidelines and are available to patients regardless of their ability to pay. Financial Assistance Counselors are available to help patients assess payment and insurance options to help make their care as affordable as possible.
Greater Portland Health uses an integrated medical home practice model and employs physicians, nurse practitioners, and physicians assistants of various disciplines. Our model includes a team of clinical social workers, four of whom have licensure as drug and alcohol counselors, clinical support staff, volunteer specialty providers in Neurology, Dermatology, Orthopedics, Cardiology, Ophthalmology and Endocrinology and a cadre of clinical and administrative support staff including three Community Health Workers and three Financial Assistance Counselors.
In addition, GPH maintains partnerships with the area's hospitals, and local mental health and family service providers. These referral networks ensure a full continuum of care for GPH's patient population. We chose the medical home model because it emphasizes care that is patient-centered, comprehensive, coordinated with outside healthcare service providers, accessible, and committed to quality and safety.
Greater Portland Healths vision is a healthy community in which everyone has access to integrated, culturally inclusive, affordable, and high-quality health care services promoting physical and emotional wellness.
As an FQHC, GPH works with its patient-majority board of directors and staff to develop and execute a strategic three-year plan. The strategic plan guides our organization in serving the community, board of directors, patients, and staff while continuing to strengthen our financial position. Strategic Plan goals for 2019-2022 include:
Greater Portland Health welcomes all. As a Federally Qualified Health Center, we do not turn anyone away based on ability to pay and accept patients with and without insurance. The patients at Greater Portland Health reflect the diverse and resilient Greater Portland community. Our patient population includes some of the most vulnerable and underserved in our community including those living in poverty, immigrants, refugees, asylum seekers, and people experiencing homelessness.
About 40% of our patients are experiencing homelessness. Our Healthcare for the Homeless site at 63 Preble Street has provided comprehensive and accessible care to Portlands homeless community since 2014. Services are adapted to meet the unique needs of those experiencing homelessness and staff provide non-judgmental care when many are at their most vulnerable, arriving in a new country, struggling with substance use or mental health issues, or living in poverty.
A large number of patients at Greater Portland Health are immigrants, asylum-seekers, and refugees. Patients at Greater Portland Health come from over 43 different countries across the globe. Many experience cultural, linguistic, socio-economic, transportation, and communication (phone, internet) barriers to accessing appropriate health services and housing. As this population continues to grow in Greater Portland, we remain committed to providing culturally sensitive care in patients preferred language.
As Greater Portland Health has grown, we have established health centers that target specific underserved populations in the community. At our 4 school-based health centers we provide medical, dental, and behavioral care to youth in the Portland public schools. Open to all students, the SBHC program predominantly serves uninsured or underinsured students. We also partner with Portland Housing Authority to operate small health centers within public housing sites at Riverton and Franklin Towers. Each of our public housing-based sites tailor outreach and services to residents needs.
