Nurses at the Union County Health Department are working to ensure every member of the local community – including those serving time – have access to healthcare.
UCHD currently has one of the most successful grant-funded programs in the state that serves a “special population,” residents at West Central Community Based Correctional Facility, Director of Nursing Krista Finch said.
“We always enjoy seeing their transformations,” Finch said. “We just want to be a part of that.”
West Central is an alternative correctional facility that offers rehabilitative treatment for non-violent offenders in eight counties: Champaign, Clark, Delaware, Logan, Madison, Marion, Morrow and Union.
The facility has 144 beds for both male and female offenders, who generally serve between six weeks and several months.
Finch said the health department has had a “great partnership” with West Central for many years.
West Central has a nursing staff, Finch explained, but no one on call for “acute issues.” The correctional facility’s medical director provides services once a week, so UCHD nurses help to fill in the gaps in between.
In the past, Finch said West Central residents were transported to the health department to access additional health services.
With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, finding safe transportation became a barrier to accessing services at UCHD.
Finch said West Central officials approached public health officials at that time two years ago with a desire to increase UCHD’s services there. The request coincided with a grant opportunity from the Ohio Department of Health to expand reproductive health services to a vulnerable population.
The program has been so successful that Finch said in a previous Board of Health meeting that the collaboration outperformed ODH expectations by 200%, causing them to reallocate additional funding toward it.
She said what started as a reproductive health clinic has since expanded to preventative health services.
UCHD has two Nurse Practitioners – Finch included – who regularly visit West Central to provide services to West Central residents.
She said they used to host clinics there twice a month, but are now at West Central once a week. They generally see between 10 and 15 patients each visit.
“They thank us profusely for being there,” Finch said. “For us, it’s really rewarding.”
Residents receive a wide variety of healthcare services, ranging from cancer and STD screenings to blood pressure and diabetes tests.
Finch said UCHD’s services are particularly important because they “could be (a West Central resident’s) only touchpoint with a healthcare provider.”
While public health nurses want to meet those at West Central’s immediate physical needs, Finch said the ultimate goal is to care for “the whole person.”
She said many individuals serving time at West Central have unique needs and have engaged in high-risk activities in the past, whether that is unprotected sex, injected drugs or smoking.
Finch said public health nurses “go in with an open mind,” listen to each patient’s needs and work to help “teach them how to engage in healthy behaviors.”
She said there are often “hard conversations that have to happen,” but UCHD’s consistent presence at West Central makes it easier for residents to be open and honest.
“I really believe people listen much more when they know you care about them,” Finch said.
Improving their health is one aspect of the rehabilitation those at West Central are working toward, she added.
She noted that “a lot of them don’t know where they’re going to go next,” so public health nurses can also help connect them with resources that will help them be successful when they reenter society.
Finch mentioned UCHD’s Community HUB program, which can help individuals meet a range of needs from getting health insurance to finding employment.
Finch emphasized that the clinics at West Central are an additional service provided by UCHD and they do not detract or pull resources from services provided to the rest of the community.
In fact, Public Information Officer Jennifer Thrush said seeking grant opportunities for specific groups can often “help stabilize and expand services as a whole.”
For instance, UCHD’s budget may not allow the agency to bring additional staff members on board but, if a grant-funded program warrants it, that individual can also provide services to the rest of the community in other capacities.
Thrush said the health department is always seeking “creative strategies” to garner additional funding to boost its services.
Ultimately, Finch said the goal is that all community members – no matter their circumstances – have access to healthcare.
“That is public health – helping people through hard times,” she said.