Bluestem Health is a federally qualified health center (FQHC), which is a federal designation from the Bureau of Primary Health Care. FQHCs are either located in, or serve, a federally designated medically underserved area/population. All FQHCs must operate under a consumer Board of Directors governance structure, and provide comprehensive primary health care, dental, and mental health/substance abuse services to persons in all stages of the life cycle. FQHCs provide their services to all persons according to their ability to pay. There are over 1,400 Community Health Centers across the country that provide vital primary care to over 18 million Americans with limited financial resources. In 2019, Bluestem Health saw nearly 20,000 individual patients and serves as a “medical home” to its patients. The definition of a medical home is the coordination of care from care plans to appointments with specialists. The patient receives consistent care from birth through old age. The medical home serves as a guide to community support services from education to transportation.
