Volunteers help prevent clinic’s shutdown

Family Care Clinic head nurse head Abbys Mitchell, third from right, poses with CORE volunteers. (Bea Cabrera)

The Commonwealth Healthcare Corp.’s Family Care Clinic almost closed down before volunteers from the Community Outreach Recovery Efforts were tapped to temporarily fill a shortage of specialized nurses.

“There were talks of closing the clinic down due to the shortage of nurses in the hospital. But if that happens, can you imagine where are all the people going will go? Patients will be displaced if we close down the FCC,” said FCC head nurse Abbys Mitchell.

“People who wanted a medication refill will most probably end up in the [emergency room], which is inappropriate. If they are going to be without medicine, they end up in the ER or become in-patients,

That is where the CORE nurses came in, filling in a need that could’ve led to the unit closing down if not for them.

Mitchell, who is also the president of Community Outreach Recovery Efforts, offered the idea of getting volunteers to help in FCC operations.

CORE was established two years ago when Typhoon Soudelor hit Saipan and provided comprehensive relief during recovery and stayed intact doing volunteer work.

“Before I offered to Dr. Elizabeth Kohnen the idea of CORE volunteers, I conferred with the CORE members first. This is what’s going on in the clinic right now—we have a shortage of people and we need volunteers. CORE, of course, said they were amicable and willing to give extra hands. From there, things started to get better,” she said.

FCC provides primary and preventive healthcare for children and adults such as health maintenance, check-ups, and treatment for various illnesses. “FCC is actually here for prevention healthcare for patients not to get worse,” said Mitchell.

Last month, CHCC lost 12 specialized nurses with expired CNMI-Only Transitional Worker visas.

The CORE volunteers started working at FCC in mid-July when the nurses affected by the cap left. To date, two volunteers are working in shifts—one in the morning and one in the afternoon—five days a week.

“The CORE volunteers do non-medical work in the clinic such as picking up medication in the pharmacy, lab results, and assist patients. Most importantly, calling for appointments. We remind patients about their scheduled appointments. If we don’t call them, they don’t show up, then it becomes a waste of a slot for our clinic. There are nine doctors here, with nine full schedules everyday and, most of the time, patients show up because they were called,” said Mitchell.

Other departments in the hospital are seeing the advantage of getting volunteers to help them with non-medical work to allow nurses more time to do medical duties and help alleviate the nursing shortage.

“Other departments have seen the help we are getting. CHCC director of nursing Renea Raho was wondering if we can have those volunteers to help them in the in-patient. One of the volunteers was tapped to type policies in the in-patient department,” said Mitchell.

“We are now working on getting CORE volunteers certified so they can get blood pressure and vital signs. As soon as we get them certified, it will be more helpful,” she added.