Shelby Health launching free clinics in community
By David Jacobs
Free clinics offering basic health screenings will begin across the Shelby community starting next week, the Shelby City Health Department said.
The clinics will include checks for:
-- Blood pressure
-- Heart rate
-- Pulse oximetry
-- Blood sugar
The Shelby clinic schedule:
-- YMCA: Mondays, beginning June 9, 9 a.m.-11 a.m.
-- Park Village: Mondays, beginning June 16, 1 p.m.-3 p.m.
-- Senior Center: Wednesdays, June 11 and June 25 and July 9 and July 23, 9 a.m.-11 a.m.
-- Marvin Memorial Library: Fridays, 10 a.m.-12 p.m.
The clinics are open to any age, said Nikki Webster, the Shelby health department's newly appointed director of nursing and health education.
She spoke of the clinics' importance.
"I think to promote health in the community or to improve health in the community," Webster said. "We need to monitor people better who may not be monitoring themselves through regular physician appointments or if they do not have the equipment at home to check their blood pressure or heart rate."
"I think that is a big part of promoting health and helping people improve their health," she added. "Better monitoring will hopefully help the community be a little more healthy."
In its announcement, the health department thanked Webster for her role in supporting the expanded clinic outreach.
A 1998 Shelby High School graduate, Webster initially worked in finance for 15 years and has an MBA and bachelor's degree from Ohio State University. In 2020, she returned to school and received her RN (registered nurse) degree.
"I kind of always wanted to be a nurse," Webster said on Thursday, noting that her career experience includes working as a nurse on a medical-surgical unit at OhioHealth Mansfield Hospital for three years.
"My goal was wanting to be in administration nursing-wise," Webster said. "That is what led me here," she said of joining the Shelby City Health Department.
Webster is a Shelby resident.
"I love Shelby," she said. "I had a good childhood here and everything. I am glad to be employed with the city."
The clinics do not have a specific funding source other than normal department funds.
"I am just going to take a couple of hours out of my day to provide that to the community," Webster said.
Nationwide Children’s Hospital School-Based Health Center
Separately, a health service for students and young people is available through Shelby City Schools. In an update on Thursday, Shelby schools said the Nationwide Children’s Hospital School-Based Health Center will remain open throughout the summer.
The center, in the building that houses the Board of Education Office, 109 West Smiley Ave., offers services to all Shelby City Schools students and those ages 0 to 21.
Summer services include:
-- Routine check-ups
-- Sick visits
-- Vaccinations
-- Sports physicals
-- Referrals to specialists
-- Additional general care
Same-day appointments may be available, the post noted. To schedule, call 567-307-6009, option 3, or visit NationwideChildrens.org/SchoolHealth.
The Shelby school-based health center was launched in 2023 in partnership with Nationwide Children’s Hospital as part of a statewide push to improve student access to medical care.
Click here to read a recent news article about the Shelby school-based health center and how it works.
Reporter David Jacobs can be reached at davidjacobs@shelbynewsreporter.com
