About the Coalition of Community Health Clinics

Community Charge

What is the Coalition?

The Coalition of Community Health Clinics is a network of thirteen private, non-profit health clinics located throughout Multnomah County. These clinics provide health services to the uninsured and under-served men, women and children in the Portland Metropolitan area. In fiscal year 2005-2006, Coalition clinics provided over 181,000 patient visits to people who had no other access to medical care.

Our Mission

The Coalition of Community Health Clinics improves access to quality health care for underserved populations.

Our Charge

The Coalition’s charge is to foster cooperation among member clinics and other providers to increase access and enhance health care quality for the vulnerable. Every Coalition clinic works to expand its services, increase the community resources available and provide more care to meet the needs of the special populations or neighborhoods that they serve.

The Coalition provides a collective voice on issues concerning health care for the uninsured and under-insured; it encourages community involvement in health care through voluntary contributions of medical, financial, and in-kind resources; and it coordinates joint projects.

Collaboration & Cooperation

A Collaborative Venue

The Coalition provides a venue for diverse clinics to share organizational and clinical best practice techniques with one another. As a coordinating entity, the Coalition provides other medical providers the benefit of connecting with the range of member clinics through a single source.

Clinics Work Together

Members work together to improve overall provider service quality, share best practice techniques, collectively respond to common issues to reduce individual clinic expenses, and coordinate patient services between clinics. Together we address a complexity of health care issues to offer more promising outcomes for the uninsured and under-insured.

Coalition Clinics take many forms

The Coalition Clinics include urgent care volunteer clinics, a pediatric nurse practitioner clinic, and a chiropratic clinic staffed by hundreds of volunteers who donate their time. They are federally qualified and receive federal funding that enables them to provide comprehensive primary care services. Whatever their size or scope, their philosophy is the same: to provide health care to those who have no other access and to lead our community to a place where everyone in Multnomah County can get the health care they need, regardless of race, ethnicity, income, housing or immigration status. We are grateful for the extended compassion of our clinics, beyond what they give each day, and for their refusal to accept the status quo of today’s health care system.

Serving the Vulnerable

Culturally Appropriate Care

Historically, the community health center movement has its roots in the Civil Rights movement. Under-served communities began to recognize the need for health care in their neighborhoods provided by the people who know them best. Because of this special history, Coalition Clinics are located where the need is greatest and employ staff from our communities. This helps set Coalition Clinics apart from other health care providers – we reflect the needs of the communities we serve and we respond to their changing demographics.

Serving Vulnerable and Low-Income Populations

Because of this unique approach to health care, Coalition clinics are able to serve vulnerable populations with high-quality, culturally appropriate care. We are able to reach the homeless, recent immigrants, at-risk teens, minorities, and other populations who all too often fall through the cracks. Because of this community focus, each clinic has a unique demographic profile. Coalition clinics are mission-driven to provide health care to our most vulnerable residents. Therefore, many of our patients rely on public insurance programs like Medicaid and Medicare and a majority are uninsured. Nearly all our patients live below 100% of the Federal Poverty Level ($20,650 a year for a family of four).