U of I Sigourney Clinic ceases primary care

The University of Iowa Community Medical Services (UICMS) has announced they will be closing their clinic in Sigourney for primary care on July 27, continuing to provide the area with specialty care.

            After more than 20 years of providing care to Keokuk County residents, the clinic will allow the Keokuk County Health Care (KCHC) to take over the county’s primary care needs. Cardiology, pulmonary and urology specialist will continue to host appointments at their regularly scheduled times.

            “ We’ve given a lot of thought, and leadership feels the situation dictates that other providers in the area are  capable of providing primary care needs,” Tom Moore, a spokesman for University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics said. “We will work closely with KCHC in this transition.”

            The move comes as a surprise and shock to the community, even to KCHC CEO Matt Ives. According to Ives, the clinic still had 7 years on their lease and showed few signs of leaving the area.

            “In the past, UICMS used to see most of our patients and train our ER staff,” Ives said. “In the last few years, they haven’t had any new physicians and weren’t using all their space upstairs.”

            Three months ago, KCHC’s board approved $60,000 to renovate and share that upstairs space with the U of I Clinic. With the current announcement, Ives plans to use the space the clinic will leave behind to provide more primary care options for residents. KCHC currently has 4 primary care providers.

            “We are already contacting candidates for more primary care positions,” Ives said. “We will utilize a majority of the space available now. It’s hard to say how many providers we plan on bringing aboard, but we will fill that void the clinic leaves.”

            This transition for KCHC comes at a time when the health center has seen demand increase tremendously over the past two year. In 2014 there were 4610 visits, which rose quickly to 7495 visits in 2015

            “It will be a good challenge for us, but we plan to do our best to provide great family services and look towards the needs of our community,” Ives said. 

            To call about appointments and medical record transfers, call the clinic at 641-622-3840 before July 27. After that date, call the U of I Health Information Manager at 319-356-1719.