Southcentral Foundation (SCF) opened the new wing of its Anchorage Native Primary Care Center (ANPCC) to customers on Oct. 5. The new addition expands the ANPCC by 80,000 square feet, an extension made necessary by the increase in customers from 25,000 in 1999 to 50,000 today.
SCF carefully planned this phase of construction for more than a decade. SCF leadership knew further expansion was necessary before the second wing of the ANPCC was finished in 2000. It was also completed on schedule and with much consideration for how each change and improvement would affect customers.
In addition to name changes, temporary clinic closures and new locations, the move integrates SCF’s Nuka Model of Care into the physical construction of the clinics.
The Family Medicine Clinic is now called Primary Care, and is separated into six clinics. The Primary Care clinics provide a more comfortable, family-oriented environment for customers. Features such as Talking Rooms, Group Rooms and Family Rooms were created with the purpose of a more integrated model of care. Each of the six Primary Care clinics will also have space for pharmacy consult and Family Health Resources.
The Primary Care clinics will encourage a team-oriented atmosphere for staff, with an open-office structure and carefully planned team setting. For the customer, this means smaller groups of people will be working together more closely to ensure better quality of care. A variety of SCF services will be integrated more closely into the customer’s Primary Care experience.
Entering the new wing is easy. Customers and employees can enter directly from the parking garage via the new skywalk or underneath it on the ground floor. An entrance into the new wing is also available through the main lobby, located on the south side of the building near the Traditional Healing Clinic garden. As construction continues on other clinics this winter, two additional entrances will be added. Between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., customer service staff is available near all Primary Care entrances to help customers locate their new clinic. Signs are also posted with names and new locations for clinic providers.
All other clinics will remain in their current location for now. The moves for other ANPCC clinics will take place through the year, with an estimated completion date in spring 2010.
