The new service, operated by the university’s College of Health, will be located in the Healthy Lifestyle Center at the university’s Interprofessional Community Clinics.
Ball State University has launched a new family medicine primary care practice, operated by the university’s College of Health, to improve community members’ access to healthcare. The primary care practice will be located in the Healthy Lifestyle Center at the university’s Interprofessional Community Clinics and has recently been staffed with three nurse practitioners to prepare for the September soft opening.
According to an article on Ball State University’s website, Dr. Scott Rutledge, who serves as the dean of the university’s College of Health, was quoted as saying of the new practice, “Expanding access to primary care is a meaningful extension of our College’s commitment to improving the health and wellbeing of the communities we serve. This practice will provide compassionate, relationship-centered care while creating additional opportunities for our students to learn in an academic healthcare environment shaped by collaboration, service, and innovation.”
The East Central Indiana community will have better access to family medicine and primary care services thanks to the new clinic, which will provide individuals with services such as annual wellness visits, preventive care, routine physical examinations, chronic disease management, women’s health services, health screenings, preventive counseling, and more. The clinic will be in-network with Medicare, most Indiana Medicaid managed care plans, and Anthem commercial insurance plans.
The clinic will focus on providing patients with relationship-based care, meaning patients will have time to ask questions about their health and will have the ability to make their own informed decisions.
Dr. Justin Tobyas, the director of interprofessional education and practice and assistant clinical professor of athletic training in Ball State’s College of Health, said, “We want patients to have a primary care experience built around listening, education, and an ongoing relationship with a provider who knows them. Our providers will work alongside patients to address immediate health needs while emphasizing prevention, early intervention, and the daily choices that support long-term wellbeing.”
As the clinic is located within the Healthy Lifestyle Center, patients may have access to an integrated approach to their healthcare, through physical, behavioral, and lifestyle health support. The Healthy Lifestyle Center is one of Ball State University's Interprofessional Community Clinics, which is a multi-specialty group practice that was established in 2019. Other ICCs include the Audiology Clinic, Counseling Practicum Clinic, and Speech Pathology Clinic. Ball State’s Teachers College also recently had two clinics join the ICCs in August: the Center for Autism Spectrum Disorder and the Psychoeducational Diagnostic and Intervention Clinic. These two new clinics are expected to begin accepting patients in October.
For more information about Ball State University, visit the school’s website.