Primary Health Care of Marshalltown cut the ribbon for their new healthcare facilities located at 101 Iowa Ave. W. Ste. 102 last night and held a community open house complete with tours, holiday treats, and pictures with Santa Claus. Photo by Nick Baur.

MARSHALLTOWN — Primary Health Care (PHC) of Marshalltown officially cut the ribbon at their new location on 101 Iowa Ave. W. Ste. 102 last night, welcoming in the new space with a community open house, facility tours, and even a visit from Santa Claus to punctuate the holiday season.

It has been several years in the making for the local clinic to find a suitable location for their healthcare services after moving from multiple facilities into the new, singular healthcare center in the spring of this year.

As PHC CEO Kelly Huntsman explained, the move has helped to amplify the services offered to patients after the clinic has spent years in the previously cramped workplaces.

“We’ve always provided outstanding services, but it was in a space that was crowded and not the environment that we want[ed] for our patients,” she said. “Now they have space, and it’s bright and beautiful, and they have places where they can just receive compassionate care. We’re just so excited for them.”

Because the primary mission for all PHC clinics is providing healthcare and supportive services to all, regardless of insurance, immigration status, or ability to pay, Huntsman said the new space creates even more opportunities for the clinic to serve the many different members of the Marshalltown community and the surrounding areas.

“We want to be here for our patients. We want to help remove barriers,” Huntsman said. “As a community health center, we’re about providing integrated care, helping them remove the barriers that they have, whatever that may be, whether it’s language or income, or the type of illness they have, whatever. We really try to work with them to provide the best service that we can.”

PHC Marshalltown Staff have also been excited about the significant capacity increase provided by the new location.

“I love that we have more room for our patients to accommodate more volume,” said Christina Aguilar, a Nurse Practitioner at PHC Marshalltown. “It provides great accessibility to our patients in the community.”

This expansion of accessibility, Aguilar says, is aided by new providers coming to the location and is paramount for the clinic in accomplishing its goal of serving whoever may walk through their doors.

“We have new providers coming, so we’re going to really allow even more access to care for the community,” Aguilar said. “The more providers we have, the better the space, the more that we can reach out to our community and serve more patients and serve a huge variety of needs.”

PHC Chief Operations Officer (COO) Nathan Simpson echoed Aguilar’s thoughts, saying the move has been all positives so far.

“Patients have been overwhelmingly positive about it,” Simpson said. “Our staff and the providers are really enthusiastic about coming to work in a space that matches the level of service that they provide, and the level of commitment and professionalism that they bring to the workplace.”

Now able to offer their full assortment of dental, medical, and pharmacy services in the same building, Simpson indicated the clinic has accomplished a major milestone for providing services in the area.

“We have everything under one roof, which is something that we really strive to do,” Simpson said. “But it’s rare to get a space where you can do everything like that. We’ve got medical and dental and then pharmacy services. So it’s truly a one stop shop for patients, which is really important.”

For more information about PHC or their Marshalltown clinic, visit their website: phciowa.org or their Facebook: www.facebook.com/primaryhealthcareiowa.

PHC in Marshalltown is also currently accepting donations at their clinic of winter clothing including hats, gloves, coats, boots, and other cold weather gear.