Caldwell closes 1 of 2 clinics

Granite Falls location wasn’t ‘cost-effective’

Thursday, Jan. 11, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

LENOIR – Caldwell County commissioners have decided to close the county health clinic in Granite Falls because, they say, it costs the county thousands of dollars to duplicate services offered elsewhere.

"It's not really cost-effective," said commission Chairman Faye Higgins.

Services at the Granite Falls clinic, which is one of only two public clinics in the county and open only on Mondays, will end Jan. 29, said Denise Michaud, director of the Caldwell County Health Department.

In July, commissioners recommended that the Health Department track the six-month cost of keeping the clinic open and how many patients were being treated.

"This has been a process," Michaud said. "It certainly wasn't a decision that was made without investigating the facts and looking at the statistics."

In a presentation to county commissioners Monday, Michaud said that 355 patients visited the Granite Falls clinic between July and December, costing the county $19,775 - roughly $56 per patient.

Closing the clinic, which focuses primarily on maternity and family planning, will require most patients to visit the main clinic in Lenoir, where the Department of Social Services is also located.

"It's convenient for many of our citizens because they can inquire about multiple services in one visit," Michaud said.

She said the Health Department will continue to hold its seasonal flu-shot drive in several spots throughout the county and is also looking into using the mobile health clinic more in Granite Falls and the southern end of the county.

"It's an extension of the Health Department and an alternate way to provide services," Michaud said. "We'll make the call based on the need."

The Granite Falls clinic is staffed by health department employees who also work at the Lenoir facility, Michaud said. Hours at the clinic, which opened in the late 1970s, were reduced from 40 hours a week to eight hours in 1981.


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