Promise CHC launches expanded family planning program with aid of grant

SIOUX CENTER � In the past, women � or men, for that matter � who lived in the far northwest corner of Iowa had to travel to Sioux City for the closest family planning clinic.

Now, they have a local option at Promise Community Health Center in Sioux Center.

Promise officially launched its expanded family planning services in February. The health center was awarded a federal grant of $84,721 annually for two years through the Family Planning Council of Iowa to establish the program.

�It�s about fulfilling our mission of improving care and finding resources that will prompt people to get that care. It was a no-brainer to apply,� said Nancy Dykstra, executive director for Promise. �They encouraged us to write the application because they thought we would do a good job with the program, and they knew there weren�t services up here. It is a good fit with what we do.�

Emma Westerholm is serving as the family planning
coordinator for Promise Community Health Center
in Sioux Center. The health center launched its
expanded family planning services in February
after being awarded a federal grant through
the Family Planning Council of Iowa.

People between the ages of 12-55 can access the services. The services include:

• Well-woman exams, pap smears and male physicals;
• Birth control counseling and supplies;
• Sexually transmitted diseases testing and treatment;
• Pregnancy tests;
• Urinary tract infection treatment;
• Sexual health education;
• Basic fertility counseling.

Promise did already provide these services, but the grant allows the health center to offer much greater discounts than its regular sliding-fee scale. As a result, those who are 100 percent or below the federal poverty level will receive the family planning services for free. Those between 101-150 percent of the FPL will pay 25 percent of the charges, between 151-200 percent will pay 50 percent and between 200-250 percent will pay 75 percent.

Dykstra noted that Promise already cares for many low-income patients, including a high percentage who are women. She said the nurse practitioners will be able to better serve that population with the additional resources. For example, she noted a woman might have received prenatal and medical care during a pregnancy, but the prior financial barrier might have caused her not to get the contraceptive care that she desired afterward. Now she can.

�This just gives the practitioners more options,� Dykstra said. �They�re able to give the women more choices and more comprehensive care because this expands those choices. We are able to better service a population of women who are low income with limited options because of where they are in life.�

The family planning funding cannot and will not be used for abortions.

�It�s absolutely black and white in our funding and our agreement that it cannot be used for that,� Dykstra emphasized.

She also noted the grant program required Promise to put into place strict security standards to ensure complete confidentiality for those who receive family planning services.

�No one else has to know that they�re getting health-care testing for sexually transmitted diseases or contraceptive services,� she said. �They and only they and their provider know that. They can go and very privately and confidentially get services. I think that�s one of the most important components of this service.�

Promise�s primary service area for the family-planning program will be Sioux, Lyon, O�Brien and Osceola counties, but the grant also includes financial resources for outreach in five additional counties for a nine-county region.

The state has more than 50 family planning clinics, but most of them are concentrated in the eastern half of the state. The northwest Iowa region was a wide open territory. The only other Iowa family planning clinics located within 100 miles of Sioux Center are in Sioux City, Onawa, Denison, Logan, Harlan and Humboldt.

�Prior to us getting this, there was really nothing in this corner of the state. That is why they allocated those additional outreach dollars,� Dykstra said. �People who were seeking the service had nowhere to go and had to drive a long ways. Now they do.�

Promise Community Health Center, headquartered in Sioux Center, is the only Federally Qualified Health Center in the far northwest corner of Iowa. Promise provides medical, dental, prenatal and behavioral health services. To learn more, visit www.promisechc.org.

WHO TO CONTACT:

People who would like to receive family planning services from Promise Community Health Center in Sioux Center are encouraged to talk to family planning coordinator Emma Westerholm. She can be reached at 712-722-1700 Ext. 670. She can answer questions and arrange for appointments. All conversations and care will remain strictly confidential.