Evolve Behavioral Health Services
Healthy Connections
My Kids Pediatric Clinic

CALL US: 888.710.8220

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Evolve Behavioral Health Services
Healthy Connections
My Kids Pediatric Clinic

CALL US: 888.710.8220

COVID-19 Testing Available in Arkansas

Healthy Connections can ensure surgical clinic and patient safety by providing COVID-19 testing at all of its Arkansas clinics.

This week, Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson announced that outpatient elective surgeries can resume beginning on Monday, April 27. For patients to be eligible for these procedures, they must meet several requirements, including having a COVID-19 test within 48 hours of the procedure. This is being done to ensure the safety of both the patient and the clinic staff during the procedure.

Healthy Connections is doing this COVID-19 testing at its clinics in Little Rock, Hot Springs, Mena, Malvern, Arkadelphia, Mount Ida, and De Queen. Call (888) 710-8220 for appointments. Visit www.healthy-connections.org for more information, including COVID-19 updates, testing locations, and more. These tests can be done regardless of patient symptoms. Healthy Connections can also work with surgical providers to test their patients before the procedure.

The complete requirements that were announced included:

  • The procedure must be scheduled so the patient is not expected to spend the night in the hospital
  • The patient must not be sick and does not have a lot of underlying medical conditions.
  • The patient has had no contact with a COVID-19 patient within the previous 14 days.
  • The patient has no symptoms of COVID-19.
  • Patients must be tested for COVID-19 within 48 hours of the scheduled surgery.

Healthy Connections specialists, including Pittman Moore, MD (OB/GYN), Richard Bennett, DPM (podiatrist), and Vito Calandro, MD (cardiologist) will also resume some surgical procedures.

Healthy Connections dentists in Mena and Hot Springs are still open and doing “emergency” procedures. These procedures include most services that aren’t considered maintenance.

Nonprofit Healthy Connections strives to fill the healthcare access gaps in Arkansas. Since its founding in 1998 as a home-visiting program, Healthy Connections has provided much-needed health, dental, and social services to families from nearly every lifestyle. Healthy Connections accepts Medicaid, ArKids 1st, Medicare, and most private health insurance. There is also a sliding-fee scale for patients without health insurance, based on total family income.

Most health insurance covers COVID-19 testing at no cost to patients. Healthy Connections is waiving patient fees for COVID-19 testing for sliding-fee scale patients who qualify.

The Healthy Connections community health network offers primary care/family medicine, general dental services, and specialties including pediatrics, cardiology, podiatry, women’s health, and chiropractic. Evolve Behavioral Health and Medication Management, a division of Healthy Connections, provides mental health services.

Nonprofit Healthy Connections opened in 1998 as a home-visiting program. Primary Care health clinics now stretch from De Queen to Little Rock and help provide care where there are disparities in healthcare access. Healthy Connections also offers specialties, including Behavioral Health, Dentistry, Pediatrics, Podiatry, Cardiology, Chiropractic, and Women’s Health, depending on location.

 

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Save Our Clinics: Congress Must Aid Health Centers

Community Health Centers of Arkansas CEO LaShannon Spencer wrote a guest column this week in Arkansas Democrat-Gazette / ArkansasOnline.com . Community Health Centers, like Healthy Connections, Inc., are doing everything we can to fight COVID-19, but we must survive and thrive after this crisis. We’re appreciative of what Congress has provided thus far, but Community Health Centers need much more help from Washington, D.C.

Click the link below to read the column in its entirety. Click here to learn more about Healthy Connections.

Save our clinics

Congress must aid health centers

LASHANNON SPENCER
SPECIAL TO THE DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE

When the novel coronavirus hit Arkansas, community health centers rose to the challenge, immediately shifting our business model. Unlike some private providers restricting who they see, we’re proud that we test residents for COVID-19 while taking special precautions to still meet the traditional health-care needs of our loyal patients.

“I have seen several families who were just so grateful that they were being seen. We have had families tell us that they were turned away elsewhere,” reports Dr. Rebekah Beyers, a pediatrician for Community Clinic in Springdale. “One mother told us she trusted that we would not tell her to come in unless we thought it was important and that we would help to keep them safe. Trust from our patients is one of the best things we could hope for.”

Many don’t realize the reach and value of community health centers in Arkansas. Without us, the state’s general health and the economy would suffer.

The 11 members of the Community Health Centers of Arkansas offer COVID-19 testing sites across the state at more than 60 of our clinics—from Siloam Springs to Eudora and from De Queen to Corning.

Without a dependable source from the state or federal governments for personal protective equipment (often referred to as PPE), we’ve scoured hardware stores and asked community partners to help ensure our staff and the public are adequately protected. We’ve kept our clinics open with special screenings in tents or drive-up evaluations to limit access.

CLICK HERE TO READ THE ENTIRE COLUMN

COVID-19 Testing For All

Healthy Connections clinics in Arkansas ARE OPEN and now testing for COVID-19 for all patients who want to be tested.

Patients with symptoms such as fever, dry cough, shortness of breath have previously been tested. We have now dropped all conditions for testing. If patients want to be tested, we can test at our Healthy Connections clinics.

To be tested, please call (888) 710-8220 and make an in-clinic appointment. You will be directed to your nearest Healthy Connection clinic to receive your test. Note that all persons will be screened for fever, cough, shortness of breath, or contact with a person who has been tested for COVID-19. The COVID-19 test will be done at a designated location including tents outside the building, a special area of the clinic, or even the patient’s vehicle. This will be done to help ensure the safety of our other patients and our staff during the Coronavirus outbreak.

Patients can also use Healthy Connections TeleHealth appointments for all primary care/family medicine issues. This can include pre-screening for flu, strep, or COVID-19 symptoms. Visit www.healthy-connections.org/telehealth to learn more.

Also remember to practice social distancing when arriving at our clinics.

Healthy Connections clinics are located in Little Rock, Hot Springs, Mena, Malvern, Arkadelphia, Mount Ida, and De Queen. Find a location near you at www.healthy-connections.org/locations.

Learn more about COVID-19 at www.healthy-connections.org/covid-19.

Testing locations

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We’re Open for Clinic and TeleHealth Appointments, Testing

The Healthy Connections community health network is open and seeing patients both in the clinic and via telehealth, allowing patients to stay in contact with their providers. These services include evaluation for COVID-19 symptoms.

Healthy Connections, a nonprofit Federally Qualified Health Center, has clinic locations in Mena, Hot Springs, Little Rock, Malvern, Arkadelphia, Mount Ida, and De Queen. These clinics see patients for primary care/family medicine, including pediatrics-focused clinics in Hot Springs and De Queen. Find a location at www.healthy-connections.org/locations.

COVID-19 testing is no longer limited to high-risk patients only. If you are sick with respiratory symptoms, we can evaluate and test you for COVID-19. You must be evaluated by a provider before any tests will be done.

While a variety of services can be provided via Healthy Connections TeleHealth (on your computer, tablet or smartphone), we can also do a preliminary evaluation for COVID-19 (Novel Coronavirus) symptoms. If a patient meets the criteria, they will be directed to a Healthy Connections COVID-19 location.

Call (888) 710-8220 or make a Healthy Connections TeleHealth appointment at www.healthy-connections.org/telehealth. Many insurances are now covering this testing and waiving copays.

Any person who enters a Healthy Connections clinic will be screened for COVID-19 symptoms.

Additionally, Evolve Behavioral Health and Medication Management is also seeing patients both in the clinic and via telehealth at Healthy Connections locations in Mena, Hot Springs, Malvern, and Arkadelphia. Learn more about Evolve at www.evolvebhs.com.

Healthy Connections and Evolve accept Medicaid, ARKids 1st, Medicare, and most private health insurance. There is also a sliding-fee scale for patients without health insurance who qualify. Medicaid patients may have to switch their primary care provider to Healthy Connections before you can be seen.

Learn more about Healthy Connections at www.healthy-connections.org.

 

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