NeighborHealth clinic cares for patients from 30 countries
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October 26, 2018
RALEIGH, N.C. — Many people take for granted that they can make a doctor’s appointment, walk into an exam room and see a doctor whenever they want. But if you don’t have health insurance, that’s not the case.
Agnes Klamte, who is from the Central Republic in Africa, doesn’t have Medicaid, her son Magloire Klamte said.
“It’s hard to find some help,” he said.
Magloire Klamte brought her to Neighbor Health, a new clinic in Raleigh because she was suffering from seizures.
“Right now, she feels safe that she finds this community to help her with her problem, so she is very happy,” Magloire Klamte said.
Dr. Doug Briggs spent the past 23 years providing health care to low-income patients in China. He brings what he learned there to Neighbor Health.
“There are a lot of people in Raleigh who don’t have insurance, or because they’ve recently come to America, they don’t really know how to get into the medical system,” Briggs said.
The clinic, which opened in June, has seen people from 30 different countries. They have translators on hand to help. Patients without insurance pay what they can base on their income.
“It was born out of a desire through some folks that had the heart to serve others,” executive director Sue Ellen Thompson said.
The goal is to help connect patients with all their health care needs.
“I think, for a lot of them, it’s something they haven’t experienced before,” Briggs said.
Magloire Klamte said he’s grateful for the clinic.
“To me, it’s a blessing to have a mother like my mom,” he said.
Neighbor Health wants to get the word out that it has plenty of empty exam rooms waiting for new patients.
