National Health Center Week campaign celebrates health centers “rooted in communities”

Wood County Community Health Center will host a Backpack and School Supplies Event from
3-5:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 8 to mark National Health Center Week.
The event, organized each year by United Way in Wood County and the Salvation Army in
Bowling Green, is part of a national campaign to increase awareness of the ways health centers
provide affordable health care in communities. A host of NHCW events that celebrate the ways
that health centers are “Rooted in Communities” are scheduled across the country, including
health fairs, visits by members of Congress and state officials, back-to-school drives, patient
appreciation events, free health screenings and much more.
Wood County Community Health Center is part of a nationwide network of locally-run health
centers that serve more than 28 million people nationwide. They are on the front lines of national
public health challenges – whether caring for veterans, providing opioid treatment, or responding
to natural disasters. They are also a lifeline in remote and underserved communities where the
nearest doctor or hospital can be as far as 50 miles or more away. Nearly half of health centers
(44 percent) are located in rural communities.
This year’s National Health Center Week will highlight how health centers are at the forefront of
a nationwide shift in addressing environmental and social factors as an important part of primary
care, reaching beyond the walls of traditional medicine to address the factors that may cause
sickness, such as lack of nutrition, mental illness, homelessness and substance use disorders.
Health centers’ success in managing chronic disease in medically at risk communities has helped
reduce health care costs for American taxpayers.
The mission of Wood County Health Department is to prevent disease, promote healthy lifestyles
and protect the health of everyone in Wood County. Our Community Health Center provides
comprehensive medical services for men, women and children. We welcome all patients,
including uninsured or underinsured clients, regardless of their ability to pay, and we accept most
third-party insurance. For more information, visit WoodCountyHealth.org