Caswell Family Medical Center Breaks Ground on Expansion

YANCEYVILLE, N.C. (June 4, 2010) - U.S. Rep. Brad Miller (D - N.C. 13th District), Sen. Tony Foriest (D - N.C.), Rep. Bill Faison (D- N.C.), the Chairman of Caswell Family Medical Center's Board of Directors, Richard Morreale, Karl Stauber, President/CEO of the Danville Regional Foundation (DRF), and Shirley Deal, Caswell Family Medical Center CEO, wore hard hats and broke ground today with shovels for the Caswell Family Medical Center (CFMC) 4,000 square-foot expansion.

"This building project is a direct result of our patient satisfaction surveys," said Shirley Deal, CEO of Caswell Family Medical Center. "Many of our patients do not have transportation to seek specialty care outside of the county. With this new addition, our patients without transportation can receive healthcare that is easily accessible."

"These are really exciting times for the Caswell Family Medical Center. Over the years the center has grown in terms of the people served and the services provided. This extension is the next step in the centers planned growth. The additional space provided by this extension will help us continue to provide quality, compassionate, customer-centered health care services to more patients and to add additional specialties to the services we offer," said Morreale. "This will, obviously, help the people of Caswell County and surrounding areas in terms of their health care requirements. It's truly an honor to serve as the Chairman of Caswell Family Medical Center at this time."

"The Caswell Family Medical Center is one of 12 community health centers in North Carolina to receive crucial funding from the Recovery Act to provide medical care to the low-income and medically underserved," Rep. Miller said in opening remarks. "Statewide, the centers will receive more than $31 million in assistance for improving access to healthcare across North Carolina."

"This is an example of where the rubber meets the road," said Sen. Foriest. "Healthcare makes a difference in people's lives. Accessible healthcare means we are reaching as many people as possible."

"One of our five core areas of focus is to promote healthy lifestyles and encourage community wellness," said Margie Wilkinson, DRF Director of Operations & Senior Program Officer. "This initiative will make quality healthcare more accessible to Caswell County citizens."

Deal agrees. "As we serve our community with compassionate, customer-centered health care, we emphasize prevention, patient education and are committed to providing affordable, high quality health care that is easily accessible to all segments of our community. This addition is another tool we can use to promote a healthy community and a health care home for individuals and families."

The expansion will allow the Center to expand its trauma room to accommodate emergency patients, provide nine exam rooms for patient care, a procedure room, three offices, storage space, and enhance healthcare services for citizens in Caswell County and surrounding areas. The project was funded through a $429,445 grant from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and the Health Resources and Services Administration, as well as a $192,240 grant from DRF.

"When DRF approved the request from Caswell Family Medical Center to assist with the facility expansion and renovation, the award was made as a challenge grant requiring a 60% match of $369,000," said Karl Stauber, CEO/President of DRF. "The matching funds needed to be raised by December 31, 2012. The agreement was signed in February 2009, and by July CFMC had acquired the matching funds through a Stimulus Grant. Within six months, CFMC had raised more than was required - a 70% match! This is an excellent example of how DRF funds can be used to leverage additional resources for our region particularly when an organization has a strong strategic plan that prioritizes its needs. CFMC was positioned and ready when grant opportunities presented themselves."

CFMC
Established in 1978 as a nonprofit community health center, CFMC provides primary healthcare services to the citizens of Caswell County and surrounding areas, particularly those uninsured and underserved. In the past twelve months, the residents of Caswell Co. and surrounding areas have received medical care from the Providers at CFMC totaling 15,569 encounters. CFMC has been accredited by the Joint Commission since 1997.

DRF
The Danville Regional Foundation (DRF) focuses on transforming the regional economy and creating a prosperous culture to benefit all Dan River citizens. It does this by making long-term investments to improve education, economic vitality, community wellness, financial stability and civic capacity for citizens throughout the City of Danville, Virginia; Pittsylvania County, Virginia; and Caswell County, North Carolina. Since its establishment in 2005, DRF has invested more than $40 million through over 40 grants.

FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Barbara Montague
Public Relations/Marketing
Caswell Family Medical Center
336-694-1181 ext 227

Christina Motley
Director of Marketing & Public Relations
Danville Regional Foundation
434-799-8969