Chippewa Valley Health Clinic, Inc.

Chippewa Valley Health Clinic, a non-profit organization, has provided access to necessary medical care to more than 1,200 individuals since July 1997. The Clinic opened in response to a serious lack of health care for more than 3,700 individuals in Eau Claire County, WI. These residents were under the Medicare eligibility age of 65, lived below the federal poverty level and did not receive any government medical assistance. Before the clinic's opening, no public free clinic existed in northwestern Wisconsin to assist those patients.

The staff at Chippewa Valley Health Clinic is determined not to duplicate services already provided but instead to make the best use of available resources. More importantly, they are committed to ensuring that the patients are treated with the dignity and respect that they deserve. So far, the founders of Chippewa Valley Health Clinic have been successful in their mission. The clinic looks and runs like any physician's office, patients receive quality care from caring professionals and they have access to low cost pharmaceuticals.

Over a dozen volunteers staff the clinic every Tuesday and Thursday evening beginning at 5:30p.m. They often see patients until 10:00p.m. Volunteers perform various services depending upon their specialization; they include physicians, nurses, social workers, and laymen. Other volunteers assist with fund raising and clinic upkeep.

In 1998, the Chippewa Valley Health Clinic was admitted as a member agency by the United Way of Greater Eau Claire and was granted one of the largest first-time allocations ever made. The United Way of Greater Eau Claire recognized the lifesaving work that is going on behind the doors of the Chippewa Valley Health Clinic and, like the patients who are treated there, want the services to continue.