CrescentCare breaks ground on Elysian Fields Health Center
21st August 2017 · 0 Comments
By Fritz Esker
Contributing Writer
New Orleans added one more address to its growing list of clinics during last week’s National Health Center Week.
On August 15, CrescentCare broke ground on a new health center at 1631 Elysian Fields Ave. The new facility, which will be near the corner of Elysian Fields Ave. and S. Claiborne Ave., will be a more comprehensive campus that will combine four of its current service sites. The facility is tentatively expected to open in early 2019.
According to CrescentCare, a Federally Qualified Health Center, the new facility will triple the organization’s capacity to provide enhanced healthcare services for residents in New Orleans, and will offer affordable health services on a sliding scale for residents of all income levels and insurance statuses.
CrescentCare already operates health and family care service facilities in Mid-City (on Tulane Ave. and S. Carrollton Ave., respectively). It was founded in 2014 by the NO/AIDS Task Force to provide more care to more New Orleanians. CrescentCare is also scheduled to open a new clinic on 701 Loyola Ave. (near the Smoothie King Center) later this year, which looks to emphasize treating victims of domestic violence and sexual assault.
The new location will provide a number of services to 8th Ward residents. There will be primary care services for adults, as well as pediatric services for children. Specialized care for the LGBT community will be available, as will OB/GYN and other women’s health services. Behavioral health services, STD and HIV/AIDS testing, and infectious disease consultation will also be available.
The construction for the new facility will be handled by DonahueFavret Contractors of Mandeville. Gould Evans of New Orleans did the designs.
There are no comparable primary care facilities near the Elysian Fields location. The new health center will be easily accessible to public transit.
During the groundbreaking ceremony, a brass band played for those gathered and snoballs were given to help guests and speakers beat the summer heat.
A number of speakers talked about the importance of the new facility.
“This project has been a labor of love,” said Jared Brossett, City Councilmember for District D. “Healthcare accessibility is what we need in this great state.”
Brossett added that the new health center is expected to serve over 9,000 people, as well as provide jobs for New Orleans residents.
Kathy Laborde, president and CEO of the Gulf Coast Housing Partnership, spoke about how healthcare goes hand in hand with the partnership’s mission to provide affordable housing. It is all a part of creating a community.
“There’s so much more to quality living besides housing,” Laborde said.
Aside from providing health care, the new CrescentCare will provide other community services, including a credit union on its first floor.
“We want to expand financial services to the community along with health services,” said Mary Elizabeth Evans, senior vice president for economic development at Hope Enterprise Corporation.
The final speaker was Noel Twilbeck, Jr., chief executive officer of CrescentCare. He talked about how CrescentCare has tripled the number of clients it served in the past two years and how they hope to again triple the number of clients they serve when the new health center opens.
Twilbeck also added how grateful he was to CrescentCare’s clients for their open communication, which has helped to improve the services they offer.
“You’ve entrusted your care to CrescentCare, you’ve graciously provided us with feedback and guidance, and you’ve held us accountable,” Twilbeck said.
This article originally published in the August 21, 2017 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.
