Research tells a startling story of health inequity in our community. In fact, there’s a 22-year difference between the Dallas County ZIP codes with the highest and lowest average life expectancies. Even more startling is that when stratified for gender and ethnicity, a Black/African American, non-Hispanic man in these zip codes will live on average 27.2 years less than the average lifespan for a man in more affluent zip codes.
Parkland’s most recent Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) showed that health concerns including the increase in chronic conditions and the need for preventive care ranked high as areas of greatest risk to our community and continue to impact communities of color at disparate rates.
Parkland’s Strategic Plan outlines the decision to expand its network of COPCs to increase patients’ access to community-based, integrated, preventive healthcare. Located approximately 5 miles north of Parkland’s Vickery Health Center (Vickery) and less than 10 miles from Garland Health Center, the Richland Health Center will provide an additional 30,000 square feet to Parkland’s COPC portfolio in northeast Dallas County.
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Co-locating the Richland Health Center on Dallas College’s Richland campus was informed by Parkland’s assessment of the prevalence of health challenges impacting the geographic area where Parkland patients reside. With the opening of the Richland Health Center, Parkland will address community disparities head-on by providing primary and specialty services to the community. With projections that the clinic will serve 18,000 patients after the clinic is fully staffed, it will offer the following expanded services:
The proposed health center will meet the needs of a growing immigrant and refugee population as well as alleviate overflow and wait times at existing neighboring health centers. With its proximity to three DART bus stops, the center also will allow for increased access as a vast majority of our patients rely on public transit to get to and from their healthcare appointments.
Parkland will maintain a presence in the Vickery Meadow neighborhood with an acute response center for patients who have recently been discharged from the hospital and require follow-up care. These centers have been shown to reduce the incidence of readmission to the hospital, especially the emergency department, which can be one of the costliest healthcare visits provided
While these challenges are daunting, no institution is better poised to deliver bold solutions than Parkland Health.
But we can’t do it alone. The ultimate success of this effort – and our ability to fulfill this vision – is dependent on philanthropy. Join us on this journey, and through your generosity, help us build a Dallas County where equitable access to comprehensive preventative care is available to all.
Parkland will invest $30 million in capital expenditures to build its newest health center with philanthropy playing a substantial role. Specifically, we plan to raise $12 million to ensure that 18,000 patients have access to healthcare in the community where they live, work and play.