The Community Health Center of Central Missouri makes health care accessible to uninsured and Medicaid patients alike.

Access to professional health care plays an essential role in one’s well-being, but for some, trying to gain access to it is a confusing, expensive endeavor — especially for those with limited means.

Fortunately, there are individuals and organizations within the health care industry who are working to allow everyone access to quality health care options. One such organization is the Community Health Center of Central Missouri, which provides medical, behavioral, and dental services to medically underserved individuals regardless of their ability to pay.

“We really try to focus on patients who may not be able to access health care through other means,” says Dr. Crystal Sullivan, CEO of Community Health Center and a family medicine physician.

The four clinics, located in Jefferson City, Linn, California, and Fulton, focus on serving patients on Medicaid and those without health insurance. While they aren’t free clinics, patients can apply to be billed on a sliding scale based on factors such as family size and income.

“For example, a patient in our clinic who is on the lowest level of the slide can be seen for around $25,” Dr. Sullivan explains. “That includes a visit with a physician or nurse practitioner and basic labs, and we have staff who can help patients who don’t have health insurance enroll in Medicaid if they qualify.”

Community Health Center also has community health workers who are able to help patients arrange for transportation. As part of their mission to make healthcare accessible, the Community Health Center provides multiple areas of patient care in each of their locations.

“We do everything we possibly can to make sure we’re able to take care of patients when they need us.”

—Dr. Crystal Sullivan, CEO, Community Health Center

“We want to be a medical and dental home and provide care that addresses mind, body, and spirit, all in one location,” Dr. Sullivan says. “We have family medicine, internal medicine, pediatrics, OB/GYN, dental, an eye doctor, counselors, and a psychiatrist. We have a full-service lab so patients can have their blood drawn; and, most of the time, we can get results back within about an hour. We also have a pharmacy so patients can get their medicine before they leave.”

To ensure accessibility, the Community Health Center offers walk-in, same-day, and evening appointments.

“We do everything we possibly can to make sure we’re able to take care of patients when they need us,” Dr. Sullivan says. “They don’t have to go to the emergency room for something that can be taken care of in the office.”

In addition to the four clinics, the Community Health Center operates two school-based clinics in South Call away and New Bloomfield. They also have three mobile units that operate as either medical or dental clinics and continue to work on ways to better serve the community.

The center hopes to break ground on the building by January 2025.

“We provide good care to patients who may not other wise have access to that care,” Dr. Sullivan says. “We want to welcome them into our clinics and support them—not only in their health goals but also in their life goals.”

Community Health Center care providers offer one on-one education and work on teaching children and families about the health care system: how to access it and the importance of preventative health care measures, such as regular dental and physical checkups.

“We meet the patients and their families where they’re at in their health care journey because my goals as a physician may not be realistic or where the patient wants the goal to be,” Dr. Sullivan says. “We have to work together as a team and respect the patient’s voice and how we can continue on that health care journey together. I will support them on the path they’re on, meet them where they’re at, and do what I can as their physician to help them achieve their goals.”

Following this philosophy has helped the Community Health Center consistently be among the top-performing health centers in terms of quality. In 2023, they received a HRSA (Health Resources and Services Administration) Health Center Quality Leader award, meaning their clinical quality metrics were in the top 20 percent across the United States.

“We want to be sure that the community is aware of who we are and what we do,” Dr. Sullivan says. “I think there are still a lot of medically underserved individuals in Mid-Missouri who are not receiving the routine medical, dental, and behavioral health care that they need. We want to get the word out and let them know that we can be a medical home for them.”