Company Profile
Northwest Human Services
Company Overview
Northwest Human Services has been providing residents of Marion and Polk counties with comprehensive medical, dental, mental health and social services for over 45 years. Our programs are integrated and designed to help support for those in our community who need it most.
We offer medical, dental and mental health services on a sliding fee scale based on family size and income. No one is turned away due to their inability to pay. Homeless youth and adults at our HOST and HOAP Programs access basic needs services, case management, peer support, and health care at our Community Health Centers. Our Crisis & Information Hotline provides 24 hour crisis support and suicide intervention as well as limited emergency financial assistance for rent, utilities, and prescription medications.
As long as there is a need, Northwest Human Services will continue to be a safety net providing health care and social services in our community.
Things Are Looking Brighter: https://youtu.be/jsOKp7myFso
Company History
Northwest Human Services began in 1970 with the establishment of the Crisis & Information Hotline. The Hotline began as a temporary information line for those planning to attend the Vortex concert, organized by Governor Tom McCall as a response to a planned protest. When volunteers answering the line realized that the majority of calls were from local citizens who just wanted to talk to someone, the "Hotline" was formally established as a 24/7 crisis line serving the local community.
The following year in the summer of 1971, two UCLA medical students arrived on the scene as part of an internship with Marion County Health Department. Appalled by the lack of health care services available to the low-income and homeless, the students, Phil Yule and Paul Kaplan, requested the assistance of the health department in opening a clinic to serve disadvantaged populations. With the department’s support and assistance, The Cry of Love Free Clinic was opened, named after a popular Jimi Hendrix album of the day.
In 1979, The Cry of Love Free Clinic became the West Bank Health Network, and later the West Salem Clinic, as it is currently known. In 1982 the agency as a whole took on the name 'Northwest Human Services' in an effort to move with the times and away from its counter-culture image - though the original mission to serve underprivileged citizens with respect and compassion remained, and remains, as strong as ever.
Notable Products / Brands
West Salem Clinic, Total Health Community Clinic
Notable Clients
underserved populations
Notable Accomplishments / Recognition
CLINIC EXPANSION
In an effort to ensure access to primary care, NWHS has embarked upon the largest building expansion project in our history. Adding over 32,000 square feet to our West Salem Clinic, we will ultimately have a 50,000 square foot building which will house our medical, dental, and mental health services, as well as our business offices and IT.
Our new Primary Care wing was completed at the end of 2020. After transitioning staff to the new space, we saw the demolition of the West Salem Clinic annex. In the coming weeks, the foundation will be prepped for our new two-story building to house our mental health and dental services, and we will be well on our way to further expanding access to our integrated services! Stay tuned.
MID-VALLEY RESOURCES NETWORK
Mid-Valley Resources, operated by Northwest Human Services, is an up-to-date database with over 300 local area resources for things like healthcare, counseling, suicide intervention, housing, homeless services, emergency financial help and more. www.midvalleyresources.org
COVID-19
Northwest Human Services is closely following local, state, and national health authorities to stay up to date with information regarding COVID-19 in Marion and Polk Counties.
At NWHS, our main priorities continue to be:
•Protecting staff who come into contact with potentially infected patients.
•Protecting at-risk patients from acquiring COVID-19 while receiving services.
•Separating those who may be positive for COVID-19 or flu while they’re onsite for testing.
We are committed to maintaining a sanitized and clean environment for our staff, patients, clients and visitors. In addition to our standard hygiene protocols, we will also provide hand sanitizing opportunities throughout all sites including our Clinics, Transitional Programs (HOAP & HOST), and Administration offices. Our leadership team is having ongoing discussions to ensure we adapt our practices as the COVID-19 situation in our area changes. Our Medical, Mental Health, and Psychiatric teams are utilizing video and telephone visits when deemed appropriate. Covid-19 testing is available for established patients of our Total Health Community Clinic and West Salem Clinic as well as symptomatic and/or exposed employees.
BLACK LIVES MATTER
America has a long history of racism and injustice towards people of color. Northwest Human Services is committed to taking a stand denouncing all violence or oppression towards people of color. We stand in solidarity with the movement calling for justice and an end to violence against black communities. We support the action steps needed to ensure racism no longer exists in our health care systems, our communities, and our country.
Northwest Human Services is a federally qualified health center and a local social service provider who recognizes that organizational and/or systemic biases lead to inequitable access to care and must be abolished to ensure optimal health for all people regardless of ones identified color, gender, culture, age or socioeconomic status.
Our programs are safe and inclusive and focus on addressing the Social Determinants of Health. Our goal is to remove barriers that prevent individuals and families from receiving care in our community. We have a diverse workforce, which enables us to build strong, trusting and long-term relationships with individuals that we serve.
Our pledge as an organization is to lead with compassion for social justice, make bold decisions and changes to break down barriers for people of color, and work together to build a community that ensures all voices are heard, validated, and respected, and that the humanity of all people is upheld.
We support the “Black Lives Matter” movement and believe that the lives of all people of color in our community have value. It is time to learn from our history and break the systemic cycles of oppression and violence so all people have the ability to live prosperous, healthy and fulfilling lives.
Benefits
Northwest Human Services offers competitive wages and a generous benefits package to staff that work at least 32 hours a week or more. Benefits include; Medical, Dental, Vision, Group Life: Short Term & Long Term Disability, 403(b) retirement plan with generous employer match, 8.5 Paid Holidays, and Paid Time Off.
Additional Benefits for Physicians Include: Relocation Assistance, Performance Incentive Plan, Retention Bonus Plan, NHSC Loan Repayment (Primary Care HPSA Score of 20!) & Oregon Provider Incentive Programs, Malpractice Wrap-Around Policy, CME Reimbursement & up to 5 Days CME Pay, DEA Certificate Renewal, NCCPA & OBMA License Renewal