Ground broken for local VA outpatient clinic

By WAYNE QUESENBERRY/Staff

Ground was officially broken Monday morning in Wytheville for a veterans’ outpatient clinic. U.S. Rep. Rick Boucher joined local officials and officials from the Department of Veterans Affairs for the ceremony at 100 Peppers Ferry Road between the Rite Aid pharmacy and East End Cemetery.
Scheduled to be completed early next year, the community-based outpatient clinic will serve veterans in Wythe, Bland, Carroll, Floyd, Giles, Montgomery and Pulaski counties and Mercer County in West Virginia. The 9,500 square-foot clinic will include 18 exam rooms, one dedicated for women’s health, and will provide primary care and mental health care services and telemedicine services.
The clinic will be staffed by 27 workers, including four primary care physicians, nursing staff, two psychiatrists, two psychologists, social workers and administrative staff.
The clinic will be open five days a week, Monday through Friday. Hours will be from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
“One of my highest priorities in representing Southwest Virginia is ensuring the availability of high quality, easily accessible health care for our region’s veterans,” Boucher stated Monday. “To that end, I have worked successfully with the Department of Veterans Affairs in order to establish veterans’ outpatient clinics in communities throughout the Ninth District.”
He noted VA-staffed outpatient clinics recently opened in Bristol, Norton, Marion, Jonesville and Vansant.
The Veterans Administration anticipates more than 5,000 patients will receive primary care and general mental health services at the Wytheville location. It will be managed by the Salem VA Medical Center.
“I want to congratulate the veterans of the region who will benefit from the primary care services which will be offered in Wytheville,” Boucher stated. “A debt of gratitude is owed by our nation to all veterans. Once our armed forces have completed their service, we have a responsibility to our veterans to ensure that they have the best medical care in a convenient setting. The construction that begins today on a new clinic for veterans in Wythe County will further this goal.”
Wayne Quesenberry can be reached at 228-6611 or wquesenberry@wythenews.com.