Free Health Care For Newtown’s Uninsured––

From Tragedy Comes The Inspiration

For A Community Clinic

By Jan Howard

The tragic death of a 3-year-old Newtown boy in an accident last summer has led to the creation of a clinic named in his honor that is designed to provide free health care for Newtown’s uninsured, low income, and homebound residents.

Dr Z. Michael Taweh, whose practice in internal medicine/geriatrics is in Danbury, has taken his family’s painful loss and turned it into a positive undertaking for this community.

Kevin’s Community Center will open sometime in June through the efforts of Dr Taweh and many enthusiastic volunteers. The goal of the clinic is to provide primary care, prescription drugs, and other services at no cost.

The nonprofit clinic will be located initially in offices at the Newtown District Department of Health in Canaan House on the Fairfield Hills campus. Services will be conducted for one half-day session (four hours) per week, Dr Taweh said, in addition to home visits to elderly residents as determined by the Social Services Department of Newtown.

“If there is a need for longer hours, we will do that,” Dr Taweh said. “There is a growing need and a larger population not insured. The needs will change as time goes by, and there will be different ways of doing it.

“It depends on the help we get from local physicians and everyone in the community. It’s a work in progress.”

In addition to the services mentioned above, Dr Taweh has arranged for free radiology and laboratory services at Danbury Hospital for anyone who uses Kevin’s Community Center. Laboratory services can be provided at the hospital or any of its satellite labs, he said.

Dr Taweh and an advisory board, comprised of members of the clergy and health and social service professionals, an attorney, and residents, have been working since September to formulate plans to bring his idea of a free clinic to fruition.

“It gave us a chance to assess the needs of the people,” resident Christine Wiemels of the Newtown Visiting Nurse Association (VNA) said.

“By doing this in memory of a child, it brings the people out,” she said. “It’s just a wonderful channel. We all can sit and brainstorm together, but a lot of the work has had to be by Dr Taweh. Dr Taweh stepped up to the plate, and has been an inspiration to others to get involved.”

“I’m happy that this is a community effort,” Dr Taweh said. “Kevin is just not my child. He has become everyone’s child.”

Dr Taweh and his wife Jocelyne suffered the loss of their 3-year-old son Kevin last August in an accident in their home. The Tawehs have a 2½-year-old son, Jason.

Planning by the advisory board has been ongoing since September. Included in that planning is setting up the office at Canaan House, doing a needs assessment, and putting together teams of general practitioners, nurses, and social workers to do home visits, which are particularly needed by elderly patients who lack transportation or are homebound.

One of the hurdles the advisory board has to overcome is the paperwork needed to conform to regulatory standards. “The paperwork and regulation are unbelievable,” Dr Taweh said. “It’s a lengthy process. Some of the applications and requirements we find out as we go along. They won’t delay us.”

“In September, we thought we would probably be ready by January,” Ms Wiemels said. “But it gets pushed back, but we’re doing it right.”

Dr Taweh said First Selectman Herb Rosenthal and his staff and the Social Services Department have been very helpful, noting the clinic’s space at Canaan House is provided free of charge. “They have been very supportive of our efforts,” Dr Taweh said.

He said the Social Services Department is a very important part of the planning. It is conducting the health care needs assessment and will have a larger role with home visits.

Dr Taweh said Dr Thomas Draper was instrumental in obtaining donations of medical equipment and office furniture at no cost from Danbury Hospital. LinCare in Brookfield recently donated a nebulizer and medications for the clinic.

 Dr Taweh is setting up a network of referrals for patients of Kevin’s Community Center who need immediate attention by a specialist. He has received several calls from other physicians who are willing to help, such as dermatologists, orthopedists, and neurologists. Connecticut VNA has offered to provide wound care.

 “Most people are calling and taking the initiative,” Dr Taweh said. “It’s amazing. Some don’t even live in Newtown.

“It will be a comprehensive list of specialists,” he said. “Eventually we will be identifying patients with chronic medical problems, such as diabetes, that will require referrals.”

 Dr Taweh is also looking for a network of physicians willing to donate time to the clinic. “Hopefully, I can have physicians willing to do it once every three or six months.” Five local physicians, who volunteered help in different capacities, also donated money, he added. He is also looking for volunteer nurses.

“We need all the help we can get,” he said.

Dr Taweh is currently looking for a director of nursing to coordinate volunteers and to make sure the clinic is running properly and to code. It requires a commitment of from 10 to 15 hours a week. Those interested in applying should call Dr Taweh at 203-778-5500. Applicants must either be actively nursing or have a background in nursing.

A clinic for uninsured and low-income residents was only one of several ideas Dr Taweh considered in memory of his son. “It was only natural that we would want to do something in our son’s name.” Among the ideas were a small nondenominational chapel, a lending library of spiritual books, and a pediatric clinic.

“The reason I decided against pediatric patients is because there is a HUSKY plan for parents who don’t have insurance, and I have little expertise in pediatrics,” he said.

Fundraising for the clinic is ongoing, with aid enlisted from Danbury Hospital, the local business, professional, and banking community, local organizations, and private donations. The local VNA has donated $10,000, which has provided seed money for necessities the clinic needs to begin operations.

“Financial donations are very important,” Dr Taweh said. “They are needed on a continuing level.” Jack Hickey-Williams, a professional fundraiser, has donated his services to help raise funds.

The clinic will have expenses that will be ongoing, Dr Taweh said, such as liability insurance and medical supplies. The clinic will dispense medications without cost, he noted, but when there is a need for drugs it does not have, the Newtown Drug Center has offered a discounted rate for clinic patients. Dr Taweh said the Drug Center was “very generous in giving medicines at wholesale prices.”

Newtown Director of Health Donna McCarthy said recently there are many uninsured people who do not get medical help. “We know it’s a growing need. This is a mixed community. We have folks who are having financial difficulties but want to stay here.

“It’s wonderful Dr Taweh wants to do this,” she said. “It’s a huge effort to pull volunteers together.”

The project will make it possible to identify specific community needs for health care and to educate members of the community on how to take care of themselves, Ms McCarthy said.

“It is a holistic approach,” Ms McCarthy said. “It’s important to show the community there is a need for it. I don’t think he’ll have a problem doing that.”

The members of the advisory board, in addition to Dr Taweh, Ms Wiemels, Dr Draper, and Ms McCarthy, are Sally O’Neil, coordinator of the Parish Nurse Ministry at St Rose Church; Mary Tietjen of the VNA; Glynis Lanzetta, director of Newtown’s Social Service Department; attorney Mike Ronan; Father Peter Towsley of St Rose; the Rev Leo McIlrath; and Rosemary Cavanaugh. The board is open to others who want to join.

“We are receptive to new ideas,” Dr Taweh said.

A year or two from now Dr Taweh sees Kevin’s Community Center as a clinic that stands out separate in the community, with a nondenominational chapel and a lending library of spiritual materials. “It depends on donations,” he said.

“I’m not worried about that aspect. People will be able to help and donate in more ways than are imaginable.”

For additional information about Kevin’s Community Center or to make a donation, write to Kevin’s Community Center, Inc, PO Box 0037, Newtown, CT 06470-0037. Information can also be obtained through its web page, kevinscommunitycenter.org.