On Saturday, July 29, Centro Médico William Salazar celebrated the grand opening of its new clinical space, at 904 Merry Street, where it houses 11 different student-run clinics that will serve underprivileged patients in the surrounding community.
After ten years in the making, President of Asociación Latina de Servicios del CSRA (ALAS) and Medical Director of Clìnica Latina William Salazar said he was overjoyed at the overpacked launch party.
“We have accomplished the goal,” he said. “This is the work of many people who have supported us and believed in us, and here we have the proof of what we told them we were going to accomplish. We made it.”
Prior to this new venue, Centro Médico staff and volunteers held these clinics once or twice a month within a small location on Augusta University’s Health Sciences Campus. However, through grants and donations, Centro Mèdico has been able to move sites to provide many more services to those in the CSRA who cannot afford healthcare.
“For the last eight years, we’ve been at the School of Nursing; they have a wonderful clinic with lots of space and all the equipment there, but it was their clinic and their rules, and we couldn’t operate during the daytime. We could only operate at night when they weren’t there using the space,” said ALAS Vice President Vilma Colòn-Oliver. “So, to be here, in our own space, calling our own shots and getting to do whatever we want is amazing.”
Clinics include: Clínica Latina, a pediatric patient clinic, a women’s health clinic, a mental health clinic, a dermatology clinic, an orthopedics/musculoskeletal clinic, an ophthalmology clinic, a pain management clinic, an Asian clinic and a HALO clinic which provides free medical services to patients with substance abuse-related illnesses.
Partnered with several organizations, including Augusta’s Housing and Development Department which donated $140,000, Centro Médico’s Clínica Latina will be managed by ALAS – a nonprofit that supports the well-being of Hispanics and other underserved populations.
Thanks to the generosity of countless organizations and volunteers, right down to the painters who gifted their skills and talents, Centro Médico is finally up and running and is honoring many of the donors with plaques that can be found throughout the facility.
“We had a lot of roadblocks and tried to build it at a different location, and the city of Augusta has been wonderful; the Housing and Development have been alongside us all these years and helping us,” said Colón-Oliver. “So many of us have worked so hard for so many years, and this is the day that we celebrate how our efforts have finally paid off. This is going to be a wonderful center.”
Alongside licensed and experienced professionals, students from Augusta University’s Medical College of Georgia, College of Nursing, Allied Health and various programs will be volunteering and completing their clinical rotations at Centro Médico.
“It’s important to work with patients directly, and to understand how health policy can influence and impact healthcare,” said Sadhana Durbha, an Allied Health student, who also serves as the assistant director of student-run clinics and board member for Centro Médico. “We also do a lot of outreach programs, so I’m working with a bunch of the pediatric coordinators to go to schools and provide services in Richmond County Schools.”
Colòn-Oliver and Salazar said student exposure to people they would be serving within their own community was extremely important, because it allowed them to integrate into their community more while giving back to those who need it most.
In the future, Centro Médico also plans to provide English as a Second Language (ESL) and even citizenship classes.
“All of these different populations are going to benefit from all of these services,” said Durbha. “I think that’s my favorite part.”
To learn more about ALAS and Centro Médico or donate to any of the clinics, visit: https://www.alas-csra.org/about-us
