Health care centers across the country are honored each August as they come together to celebrate their work as the backbone of the United States’ primary care system. From identifying social and medical inequities, providing services to a growing portion of the country’s population, to providing a medical home or protecting communities from COVID, federally qualified health centers provide care for over 400,000 patients in CT alone.
As Fair Haven Community Health Care (FHCHC) celebrates 50 years of serving the New Haven community, the health center is launching new services to address the growing needs of the aging community in their care.
Building on strengths in primary care and behavioral health care, FHCHC is pleased to welcome Podiatrist Ann Jurewicz, DPM and Karla Tejada-Arias, MD who practices Internal Medicine with a specialty in Geriatrics. Dr. Jurewicz holds triple board certification in foot surgery, podiatric medicine, and wound care. In additional to regular foot exams and integrated care consultations, she offers patient care for calluses, toenail infections, ingrown toenails and diabetic foot care, all concerns that tend to occur more frequently with age.
Raised in the Dominican Republic, a fluent Spanish speaker, and a graduate of Harvard Medical School’s geriatric fellowship, Dr. Tejada-Arias’s focus in geriatric care provides patients with a specialist who can treat patients with memory issues including cognitive assessment, dementia treatment, and depression, as well as those with mobility challenges, including difficulty walking, falls, osteoporosis, and functional assessments. Dr. Tejada also offers comprehensive geriatric assessments including frailty, incontinence, and pre-op evaluations for older adults, as well as medication management.
“We are thrilled to welcome Drs. Jurewicz and Tejada to the FHCHC family and broaden our expertise to benefit our older patients,” said Dr. Benjamin Oldfield, Chief Medical Officer at FHCHC. “We are honored that so many of our patients continue their care with us as they enter their senior years and we want to offer them the best care possible so they can enjoy their golden years to the fullest, and remain as happy and independent as possible.”
In addition to medical and behavioral health care, senior FHCHC patients can also be seen by an endocrinologist, as well as have access to an award-winning diabetes prevention program. “Geriatric and other specialty services may be inaccessible or have long wait-times elsewhere. We’re meeting patients where they are and bringing these services to them,” Oldfield added.
FHCHC is now accepting new patients. To make an appointment, please call 203.777.7411.
Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, community health centers such as FHCHC have been working hard to ensure everyone can access affordable, high quality health care. FHCHC continues to offer free walk-in COVID vaccines, Monday-Friday, 9:30-3:30pm, with extended hours until 6:30pm on Tuesday and Thursday. FHCHC was a proud partner in the Vaccinate Fair Haven effort, ensuring COVID vaccine access and education were broadly available to the Fair Haven community.