Church Health Center

Description

Church Health seeks to reclaim the Church’s biblical commitment to care for our bodies and our spirits and to improve health and well-being so that people can experience the full richness of life.

History

Dr. Scott Morris, a family practice physician and ordained United Methodist minister, founded Church Health in 1987 to provide quality, affordable healthcare for working, uninsured people and their families. Thanks to a broad base of financial support from the faith community, and the volunteer help of doctors, nurses, dentists and others, Church Health Clinic has grown to become the largest faith-based healthcare organization of its type in the country. Currently, we care for more than 58,000 patients of record without relying on government funding. Fees are charged on a sliding scale based on income. The average visit costs about $25.

In 1986, after college, seminary, medical school and his ordination as a United Methodist minister, Dr. Morris moved to Memphis, one of the poorest major cities in America. Dr. Morris knew the need would certainly be there, and if the Center could work in Memphis, it could work anywhere.

That same year, Dr. Morris was appointed as an associate pastor at St. John’s United Methodist Church (a position he still holds today) and he began to plan and to raise the initial funding for Church Health. St. John’s purchased the organization’s first building, a dilapidated boarding house across the street from the church, and agreed to lease it for $1 per year. Central Church agreed to finance the renovation of the building and its conversion to a clinic. The Plough Foundation and Methodist Hospital each agreed to give funding to launch the Center. Dr. Morris and one nurse saw 12 patients on September 1, 1987, and since then Church Health has grown to handle more than 44,000 patient visits at its clinic each year.