Congratulations to our staff for achieving “Silver Status” recognition for our childhood immunization rates and to our Ferndale staff for their “Bronze Status” recognition for adolescent immunization rates. Thank you for protecting our young patients from vaccine-preventable diseases!
Thank you to all of you who attended the groundbreaking ceremony on Thursday, June 7 for our new North Whatcom Health Center in Ferndale. It was wonderful to be joined by so many local dignitaries, and a big thanks to KAFE 104.1 and Scotty VanDryver for broadcasting live from the event.
We’re excited to see construction start. The North Whatcom Health Center will expand access to primary medical, dental, behavioral health, and pharmacy services in north Whatcom County. The new 23,000 sq. ft. health center will serve 9,500 patients. It will include 12 dental operatories, expanding access to adult dental care in our community. The facility will also have the most comprehensive behavioral health services in Whatcom County, outside of Bellingham. It will bring on-site pharmacy services to our Ferndale location, and it will employ 60 full-time staff and will contribute to the revitalization of Ferndale’s Portal Way corridor.
We expect the health center to be open to patients by the summer of 2019. Watch for updates on our progress in the coming months!
The Second Annual “Healthy Kids Art Contest” is now underway! The contest will run from May 1 through May 31 and is open to kids up to age 10 who are Unity Care NW patients, the children of our patients, or the children of our staff. Four artists will win a $25 gift card to Village Books and Paper Dreams. Entry sheets can be found in the waiting rooms of our Unity Street, Ferndale, and Point Roberts health centers or here. Completed artwork should be placed in the envelopes that are posted on the waiting room bulletin boards.
Thanks to Village Books and Paper Dreams for supporting our young artists!
The 18th Annual Children’s Art Walk was held Friday, May 4th in downtown Bellingham. Sponsored by Allied Arts, the event exhibits the art work of local students. Unity Care NW is pleased to host Birchwood Elementary again this year.
If you weren’t able to make it on May 4th, the art work will be posted throughout the month. Learn more about the event here.
The Affordable Care Act, otherwise known as “Obamacare,” did more than expand access to health insurance for 27,000 Whatcom County residents and millions across our country. It changed the way we deliver care. It challenged us to focus on prevention and improved health outcomes. It charged non-profit community health centers like Unity Care with finding new ways of coordinating care to address the health needs of the whole person, the whole family, and the whole community. It reduced financial barriers to quality health care. It put many in our community on the road to wellness after years of neglected health. It saved money in the Washington State budget which can be re-invested to improve the education of our children.
At Unity Care NW, we see 5,340 more patients than we did in 2013. Only 8 percent of our patients are uninsured today, compared to 23 percent in 2013. The Affordable Care Act also provided the funding to expand our services, including the construction of new adult dental and behavioral health facilities in Bellingham.
Learn more about the patient protections brought about by the Affordable Care Act by watching the new video below. And check out the other informational videos available on our YouTube page.
Our Mobile Dental Program team is preparing for the new school year, with their first visit scheduled for September 26. Unity Care NW’s Mobile Dental Program offers preventive dental services to students across Whatcom County, including dental exams, sealants, fluoride, and oral health education. Last year, the program served 1,530 students at 50 schools and 19 daycare centers. We will visit all Head Start sites and all elementary and middle schools in Whatcom County in 2017-18.
We’re looking forward to another year of helping kids have healthy teeth and beautiful smiles!
Sunday, October 15th, 6pm to 8pm
Ciao Thyme Commons
207 Unity Street, Bellingham
We invite you to support affordable medical, dental, behavioral health, and pharmacy services for everyone and improved access to health care throughout our community. More details to follow. Contact our Development Office at development@ucnw.org to learn more about sponsorship opportunities.
Unity Care NW would like to thank all the young artists who entered in our first “Healthy Kids Art Contest”. We received a number of creative entries from local kids whose assignment was to create a picture of what good health looks like or what being healthy means to them. Congratulations to our four winners, who each received a $25 gift card to Village Books and Paper Dreams!
Unity Care NW would like to thank Senator Maria Cantwell for visiting our Bellingham health center on Saturday, June 24. Senator Cantwell held a roundtable with community stakeholders at UCNW to discuss the impact of proposed Medicaid cuts on veterans, and all patients. Following the roundtable, our Medical Director, Dr. Barb Clure, gave the Senator a tour of our new Adult Dental and Behavioral Health facilities.