Published: March 05, 2008 12:34 pm      

BCSC employees to have medical clinic

BROWNSBURG — School officials here say an onsite health care clinic is needed to serve employees and reduce the amount of time they’re out of the classroom.

Jodi Gordon, director of human resources for Brownsburg Community School Corporation, said school officials have been looking into offering school employees the opportunity to use a free medical clinic — Novia Care Clinic — as a part of their benefit package.

Gordon explained that BCSC employees who are insured under the Central Indiana School Insurance Trust package can receive basic family physician care by certified doctors and nurses at no cost through the Novia Care Clinic system.

“The cost of the clinic is the responsibility of the insurance trust,” Gordon said. “The trust believes long term it will save money because members will not incur medical claims by going to the hospital, emergency room, or physician’s office, but rather going to the clinic at no charge.”

Lanny Green, vice president of Novia Care Clinic, said their clinics are primary care clinics, much like a family physician’s office, that are located at the employee’s business.

Green said the idea behind creating the Novia Care Clinic was to establish a relationship between the patient and the doctor. Visits will be by appointment only and in 20-minute intervals.

“(Employees and their families) get to use the clinic at no cost and will have certain drugs that will be dispensed, also at no charge,” Green said.

There are currently eight Novia Care Clinics in Indiana with seven more in the process of starting up. Green said there are also two other school corporations in northern Indiana that have set up Novia Care Clinics for their employees.

“We find it to be more beneficial than traveling to the doctor and having to leave work for the rest of the day,” Green added.

Green explained that there is sometimes an initial reluctance for people to use such a clinic, so the Brownsburg clinic will only be open for 12 hours each week. Once more people see the benefits of the program and start using it, the hours will be increased.

Green said with each new clinic, they always see an increase in hours in the first two to three months.

Donna Petraits, director of communications for BCSC, said the corporation is serving as a pilot program for other Hendricks County school corporations that are interested in using the Novia Care Clinic system.

“It’s a convenience and I think it is very cost effective,” Petraits said.

Gordon said construction crews are currently working to renovate a house between Delaware Trail Elementary School and Brownsburg West Middle School on Hornaday Road. School officials are expecting the clinic to be up and running by April 1.

“It’s a wonderful concept that we are pleased to offer our employees,” Gordon added.