Eye Exam 1

Free Eye Exam and Glasses Available for Fire Victims

by EventsNewsworthy

Free eye exam and glasses available for Gatlinburg fire victimsUpdate: Due to inclement weather, the Lions Charity Vision Clinic for displaced fire victims scheduled for today (1.7.17) at Boyd’s Bears in Pigeon Forge has been cancelled. We hope to reschedule in the near future.

People displaced by the Sevier County wildfires at the end of November can get a free eye exam and free eyeglasses, thanks to Smoky Mountain Lions Charities.

The charities’ mobile vision lab will be set up on Saturday, Jan. 7 at the former Boyds Bear building in Pigeon Forge, which has been the distribution point for goods and services given out to fire victims. Fully trained eye care professionals will conduct eye tests between 11 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. They will draw up new prescriptions and conduct thorough tests including for glaucoma. Eyeglasses based on the new prescriptions will be delivered to Boyds Bear about two weeks later, at times to be set up with patients on Jan. 7.

It will take an estimated 45 minutes to an hour for patients to undergo testing and to choose new frames. No reservations are required, but would be helpful. Please call Jim at 865-556-9091 for an appointment or more information.

The Boyds Bear building is at 146 Cates Road in Pigeon Forge. If heading toward Gatlinburg, turn left just before traffic light 10 at the sign that says Distribution Center. Boyds Bear is a big red building on the left side of the road.

The eye lab will be on the second floor of the building, which is accessible only by walking up a long flight of stairs.

“We’re extremely happy that Smoky Mountain Lions Charities is choosing to provide this service to victims of Sevier County’s fires,” said Mary Vance, executive director of Mountain Hope Good Shepherd Clinic, which provides medical and dental care to Sevier County residents who lack health insurance.

Forest fire, Wildfire burning tree in red and orange color at night in the forest at night, North Thailand.

A Letter From Mountain Hope

by Newsworthy

*Please note that we can no longer accept donated medications.

December 2, 2016

Dear Friend of Mountain Hope,

This morning, I am sitting at my kitchen table, completely overwhelmed.  The last 72 hours have brought death and destruction to the community I love, but they have also brought wave after wave of generosity and grace and hope—these things come in spades in Sevier County– it is something I have learned over the twenty years that I have called this place home.  People here rally, and people here overcome. It’s a pattern that is being tested hard at this moment in history…but we’re in it together, and we will come out on the other side.

It is all I can do to turn on my Keurig and brew a cup of coffee without breaking down completely—I have cried more tears than anyone should over the last three days—and mine pale in comparison to those of the victims of the devastating wild fires that ravaged so many and have changed all of our lives.  My home was spared, but more than a dozen close friends are homeless this morning.  Dozens more folks who I know through church and the gym and the Clinic have nothing—NOTHING–left; these are families with children, people working multiple part time jobs to survive already—and they’ve just been dealt an excruciatingly horrible blow.   As I write this letter, we know of 14 confirmed deaths, 134 injuries, and that 17,000 acres of forest have burned.  There are 1684 buildings lost—homes and businesses alike.  There are folks missing and in burn units three hours away at Vanderbilt.  Family members and friends who have been frantically trying to find people they love have lost energy, and now they are dealing with the awful, helpless, gut-wrenching feeling of just not knowing for sure.

Mountain Hope Good Shepherd Clinic was closed for two days and the few hours I was able to spend in the office the following day left me exhausted, both physically and emotionally.  I came in late, after a meeting with a local hospitality group where I heard story after story of devastation, homeless employees, first responders who barely made it out.  Our lobby was full… and the phones were ringing off the hook with patients and patients-to-be, desperate for some help, any help.

I stopped to ask a question of one of our receptionists, and paused as not to interrupt a patient at the window.  “I have no insulin,” she told Jessica, “It’s so expensive.”  She was so close to tears, and she said nothing for a few moments, and then, “My house is gone.  Nothing left.”

I wish I could tell you we had insulin to give that patient.  We didn’t, but after a few phone calls, I came up with it.  I am grateful for that, because the effects of not having insulin for a Type 1 diabetic can be devastating. Carolyn Jenkins*, the sweet woman who needed insulin, is not the exception today at Mountain Hope—she’s one of the many who have come to us so far, and there will be many follow her through our doors in the coming days. They are scraping the barrel to come up with food and clothing and shelter, most can’t possibly consider buying medications—even life-saving medications like insulin—right now.

Not long after my encounter with Carolyn, I saw Donna Scott, our pediatric nurse practitioner, sending a young woman and a boy of about five out the door with a case of PediaSure—something we don’t normally keep on hand. “What was that about?” I asked as she frowned, looking down at the chart. “Sandra* cleans cabins,” she told me, “They are all gone and so is her job, and they lost their house, and that baby, Lucas*, is seriously underweight.  He needs nutritional supplements for at least a year… How can they handle that when they don’t have a roof over their heads or money coming in?” More tears.  Of course, Donna had sent a volunteer down the road to the grocery store to buy that first case of PediaSure, but we needed more.

Normally, we ask patients who can to pay $30 for an office visit, which leaves us a $65 deficit to make up somehow, but right now, $30 seems far, far too much, so we aren’t asking it from fire victims who have no insurance to soften the blow. We know all too well that we need to keep those who have jobs to return to healthy and working as we look for ways to mitigate the hardships and damage that surround us.

I’m going to be frank.  We need your help, and we need it badly.  This will be a very different kind of holiday season for so many of us, especially for those like Carolyn who have to face the worry of not having desperately needed medication and care, and Sandra who doesn’t have the means right now to provide for the sweet little boy who is her whole world… Please, as Christmas approaches, remember that health is a gift that cannot be taken for granted, and it is imperative for us to take care of the hurting when they’ve already lost so much. You can change and save lives by supporting us right now and our patients need you. If you can do nothing more, I ask you to pray for us in Sevier County.  If you are able to help us with the costs of providing medical and emergency dental care and prescription drugs for our neighbors, I want to thank you and tell you that you’re making a difference in this brilliant, beautiful community in which we live.  You are part of the tradition of generosity and grace and hope that has always made Sevier County the best place in the world to call home, and you are the reason we will rally and overcome.  At this horribly trying moment in history, all of you should know that at Mountain Hope we truly believe that we’re in this together, and– as always– we will come out on the other side.

May you be blessed for your faithfulness,

ash-sig

 

 

Ashley Burnette, Director of Fund Development, Mountain Hope Good Shepherd Clinic

Mary sign

 

 

Mary Vance, Executive Director, Mountain Hope Good Shepherd Clinic

 

Donations can be mailed to Mountain Hope Good Shepherd Clinic, P.O. Box 5937, Sevierville, TN 37864 or made by PayPal when you follow this link: https://mountainhope.wpengine.com/donate/

*names of patients have been changed to assure their privacy

Vaccination

Clinic Works with Health Department on Immunizations

by News You Can UseNewsworthy

Mountain Hope Good Shepherd Clinic National Immunization MonthYou may not know that August is National Immunization Awareness Month, but the staffs of Mountain Hope Good Shepherd Clinic and Sevier County Health Department are already very aware of it.

The Clinic and the Health Department collaborate closely this and every month to ensure that as many of their patients as possible have all the immunizations they need to keep them healthy.

When a patient comes to the Clinic requiring immunization, “we try not to duplicate services, so we refer all our (unvaccinated) patients to the Health Department for their immunizations before we accept them,” said Clinic Executive Director Mary Vance. “Anyone born outside the United States must show proof of CDC-required immunizations before we accept them as a new patient. They can receive those immunizations at the Health Department.”

This collaboration works well, says Jana Chambers, director of Sevier and Cocke County Health Departments. It’s really important to the Health Department’s goal of improving public health. The more people immunized, the less likelihood there is of diseases such as whooping cough making a return. “The more people who are not immunized, the more the likelihood” of  formerly rare illnesses making a comeback, such as the measles outbreak at Disneyland recently, she said.

The Health Department sent staff to Mountain Hope to give immunizations during the Clinic’s two days of free physicals last month. That was a good opportunity for collaboration, because those patients have no health insurance, Chambers said. The Health Department does not charge uninsured patients for the vaccines, and charges a small fee on a sliding scale for administering them. Often, the patient pays nothing at all.

Among the vaccines given are MMR (mumps, measles and rubella) and TDAP — tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis, better known as whooping cough, which is making a comeback. The pertussis vaccine cannot be given to newborns, so it’s important that family members become immunized before the baby is born, Chambers said.

Her departments are busy at school immunization clinics as school begins. If students haven’t had their immunizations by the first day of school, “they’re sent home,” she said.

She emphasized that immunizations are widely available in some pharmacies and in local physicians’ offices. The Health Department is not trying to compete with other health providers. “We’re here to do what we can to protect the health of the community,” she said.

Apparently it is doing a good job. In July 2015, the Sevier County Health Department received an award for being the outstanding mid-size health department in the nation.

“National Immunization Awareness Month is the perfect time for … physicians to make sure that their patients are up to date on the latest recommended adult immunization schedule,” said Nitin Damle, MD, president of the American College of Physicians.

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Mountain Hope Clinic Says Goodbye to Dr. George Kirkpatrick

by Newsworthy


Dr.-K-510x572 croppedWe are deeply saddened to relay the message that Dr. George Kirkpatrick, a beloved member of the Mountain Hope Good Shepherd Clinic staff, has passed away.

Dr. George Kirkpatrick joined Mountain Hope Good Shepherd Clinic in August of 2015.

Dr. Kirkpatrick, known to Mountain Hope volunteers and staff as “Dr. K.” was trained in comprehensive care and appreciated having time to spend with patients. In a recent interview he said, “It’s so good for me,” when asked of his work at Mountain Hope, “It’s the best move I’ve made in a long time.”

George Kirkpatrick grew up in Western Pennsylvania and attended the Air Force Academy, but after two years decided to focus on pre-med education at the prestigious Johns Hopkins University. He sold knives from door to door to pay for his education. Later, he studied at Hahnemann Medical College in Philadelphia (now part of Drexel University).

While he was completing his residency in Muncie, Ind. he earned his master’s degree in teaching. Later he moved to Chattanooga and practiced medicine in Athens, Tenn. for 15 years. In total, he practiced medicine for more than 40 years.

Dr. Kirkpatrick used his teaching qualifications by becoming an associate professor of family medicine in Chattanooga while working in Athens. Later he moved to Mobile, Ala. where he taught at the University of Southern Alabama. In Mobile, he switched to emergency room work, and it was there he met a nurse who– years later– would later tell him about Mountain Hope Clinic, where she began to work one day weekly after her retirement.

Dr. Kirkpatrick and his wife, Wanda, had moved to the Richardson’s Cove area.  Until recently, he worked Mondays and Fridays at the Clinic and continued his emergency room work in Mobile, Ala. two days a week, twice a month.

Dr. Kirkpatrick’s hobbies included saltwater fish, gardening and flowers, and he was always a welcome presence at Mountain Hope.

Please keep Dr. Kirkpatrick’s family in your continued prayers.