Lackey Clinic is a faith-based, free and charitable healthcare center, offering high-quality services for uninsured, working adults, who struggle to afford the high cost of healthcare. The Clinic provides primary and specialty medical care, dental care, eye care, free and low-cost medications, behavioral health counseling, and spiritual care. The Clinic has been serving the community for 27 years, and it recently began reaching beyond its walls by offering telehealth services to those in need of healthcare.
“Telehealth is especially important,” said Lackey Clinic CEO, Larry Trumbore, “because many of our patients do not have transportation, childcare, time off work, or translation capability, and they have limited income to try and pay for any of these. The number of people in our communities who do not earn enough to afford basic necessities is growing, and telehealth alleviates many of these barriers preventing them from quality healthcare.”
When the Clinic’s patients responded so well to the new telehealth program provided, the staff began thinking of ways to further utilize it. “In addition to the quality in-person care we still provide,” said Trumbore, “we have expanded our vision for telehealth, and we now offer Virtual Meet and Greets for us to get to know our new patients, Virtual Same-Day Visits for our patients to get immediate help, and Lackey Virtual Urgent Care for people who have an urgent but non-life-threatening condition.”
Dr. Jill Cottel, Lackey Clinic’s Medical Director, said, “Our Virtual Urgent Care is specifically designed for people who are not our patients. Within a few clicks, a person can almost instantly be connected to one of our Lackey Clinic providers and have their health concerns addressed. This has been such a helpful way to reach new members of our community, who often go on to become full Lackey Clinic patients.”
The Clinic’s virtual urgent care is free of charge, which eliminates a barrier for those who cannot afford care, and it now offers evening hours for appointments. “We have been able to prescribe and provide affordable prescriptions, medical guidance, and patient education,” said Dr. Ralph Robertson, former Lackey Clinic Medical Director and current volunteer medical provider. “Many say they would either not have sought care or would have gone to an ER.”
The Clinic’s mission is ‘to provide skilled, compassionate healthcare and counseling to the medically disadvantaged in a manner that honors the name of Jesus Christ.’ Trumbore said, “We are expanding the reach of our mission in order to help more people, provide them with better access to healthcare, and hopefully help them have better health outcomes.”
The Clinic has volunteer opportunities for licensed or certified medical, dental, pharmaceutical, and behavioral health professionals, and it also offers administrative roles. For more information on Lackey Virtual Urgent Care, please visit www.lackeyclinic.org/urgent. For more information on how to volunteer or help support the Clinic, please contact Kim Spencer at kspencer@lackeyhealthcare.org, 757-886-0608 ext. 233.
