BRUNSWICK

The Times Record: What is the mission of Oasis?

Oasis Health Network: Oasis Health Network clinics offer free, quality health care services with dignity, confidentiality, respect and equal access to persons of limited means living in Southern Mid-coast Maine, thereby enhancing the health of the entire community.

Our catchment area extends from Freeport, Durham and Bowdoin to Topsham, Brunswick, Harpswell and all of Sagadahoc County, except Richmond which has a federally qualified health center.

TR: How do you fulfill that mission?

OHN: We do this by offering our patients high quality, comprehensive primary care five days a week at our clinic on Baribeau Drive in Brunswick. Patients are seen by an assigned provider to insure continuity of care. We are able to offer same day or next day appointments to our established medical patients, and are able to get new patients in within a week, or sooner if an urgent need exists.

Our mental health and dental services are in high demand, and these programs do often have a waiting list. Thanks to our volunteer providers, however, we are often able to have patients seen by a psychiatrist or dentist within a period of weeks.

In addition, our prescription assistance program helps our patients, as well as low-income patients of medical practices throughout the communities we serve, obtain high-cost prescription medications. These medications may cost upward of $1,000/month, and for many there are no lower cost alternatives.

TR: What are the biggest challenges Oasis Health Network faces?

OHN: Our patients face daily challenges related to income insecurity: lack of access to reliable transportation, lack of educational opportunities — factors which impact their health in ways both direct and indirect — poor nutrition, difficulty affording medications, trouble getting to appointments, etc.

Many of our patients deal with the challenges of chronic disease, both medical and mental health, which often make it difficult for them to find and keep jobs, especially those that might provide health care benefits.

Lack of access to community mental health services are extremely limited if a patient lacks insurance, often leading to cycles of hospitalization and incarceration.

In addition, we are always trying to keep pace with the ever-changing health care landscape, and anticipate the need for our services in the future. Even as we encourage patients to sign up for insurance as they are able, we are seeing the difficulty many people face once insured. In many cases, though premiums may have been made affordable, out of pocket expenses to meet deductibles (often $5,000 or more for a single person) still prevent people from seeking care.

Lastly, for those people with incomes at or below the federal poverty level (about $12,000/year for an individual) and who would have qualified for MaineCare had the expansion happened in Maine, there are no subsidies or tax credits under the ACA. This leaves these people, some of the neediest and most vulnerable, without any access to insurance, or health care except through free clinics and hospital charity care.

TR: What is something that people don’t know about Oasis Health Network?

OHN: With a staff of two full-time and one part-time employees, and a budget of approximately $200,000 in 2014, Oasis was able to:

— See approximately 4,000 patient visits with a value of $300,000-$400,000;

— Obtain nearly $1 million worth of medications at no cost to patients;

— Provide more than $100,000 worth of dental services, on a dental program budget of approximately $10,000.

In 2015, we will be installing two fully-equipped dental chairs in our current location on Baribeau Drive in Brunswick, expanding our dental capacity, and offering all of our services under one roof.

TR: How can people support your mission?

OHN: Obviously, we could not do what we do without the support of the community. We rely on our volunteers, both providers and administrative support, to deliver the services of our three programs: medical and mental health, dental, and prescription assistance.

We also rely on the financial support of the communities we serve, and welcome donations of any size.

Contacting clinic

Name: Oasis Health Network

Founded: 1992

Address: 66 Baribeau Drive; Suite 9/10 Box 1, Brunswick

Phone number: (207) 729-1368

Website: oasishealthnetwork.org