Formerly known as Community Health Centers of King County, the private, but nonprofit HealthPoint has served as a community health center for the Seattle area for four decades, said HealthPoint Marketing and Communications Director Diana Olsen.

HealthPoint has moved around a bit locally, having had three Bothell and Kenmore locations. Bursting at the seams, in the words of Health Center Manager Maria Tapia, HealthPoint moved from its Bothell-Way location in Kenmore in February.

With a visit from U.S. Congressman Jay Inslee, they recently held an open house in their new home, 10808 N.E. 145th St. in Bothell.

According to Tapia and Olsen, besides providing the organization with much-needed space, a key feature of the relocated operation is the fact it shares a building with a King County health clinic. Olsen added that both sides promote cooperation between the two staffs.

Still, despite the many advantages offered by the relocation, there was some concern that HealthPoint’s patients might not follow the clinic to its new home. If anything, Tapia said the Bothell spot is attracting more patients.

“We are right in the community,” she said, adding the clinic now sits in a residential area as opposed to the busy business strip that is Bothell Way. And even though the clinic was moved to Bothell, the location still serves both Bothell, Kenmore and surrounding areas.

With 12 King County clinics, HealthPoint acts as what Olsen called a “health safety net” for the Seattle area. Overall, HealthPoint provided more than 205,000 medical visits for more than 60,000 patients in 2009.

At the Bothell clinic, Tapia said 43 percent of patients were uninsured. Olsen feels if HealthPoint closed its doors, many of those uninsured patients would end up with no care or expensive emergency room care. The Bothell HealthPoint has taken the added step of partnering with Evergreen Hospital to steer to the clinic patients who do not really need emergency treatment.

While they serve plenty of uninsured patients, HealthPoint facilities are open to all, from those with insurance to those who pay on a sliding scale based on income. While clinic doctors routinely make referrals to specialists, Tapia added HealthPoint tries to be a “one-stop shop” for all its patients. Family planning, nutritionists and behavioral health specialists are all on site.

“Everybody really works together to make sure the patient is healthy,” Olsen said.

Further, in keeping with guidelines for federal funding, HealthPoint can offer help or referrals regarding everything from health insurance to housing.

As one more key example of HealthPoint’s attempts to meet all its patients’ needs under one roof, Olsen noted the new Bothell location has its own pharmacy, something the Kenmore clinic lacked.

“A lot of our patients have obstacles to care,” Olsen continued, with transportation sitting near the top of that list.

“If we had to count on them to get to the corner drugstore, they might not ever get their medicine.”

HealthPoint’s newest drug dispensary has a couple of unique features. When a clinic doctor writes a prescription, it is transmitted electronically to the HealthPoint pharmacy and could be filled and waiting for pick up before the patient arrives at the pharmacy counter. For simple, common prescriptions, HealthPoint has a sort of electronic drug dispensary that automatically fills a patient’s needs.

According to Olsen, another HealthPoint strength lies in the organization’s dedication to natural, as well as mainstream, medicine. HealthPoint regularly partners with Kenmore’s Bastyr University, which specializes in natural medicine and similar medical approaches. Both Olsen and Tapia said HealthPoint offers acupuncture, nutrition help and similar services.

According to Olsen, HealthPoint receives most of its funding through various grants, though they hope to increase the number of private donations.

In light of recent federal health-care reforms, Olsen said many patients have questions about the future of community clinics such as HealthPoint. Reforms mean that eventually everyone will have health insurance.

“Everyone is still going to need a doctor,” she said, adding HealthPoint is readying itself for a greater number of patients, not fewer.