NSO Partners with CHASS Center

NEIGHBORHOOD SERVICE ORGANIZATION NAMES Community Health and Social Services (CHASS) Center, Inc. AS PRIMARY CARE CLINIC PARTNER
Through partnership, NSO contracts with CHASS Center to provide practitioners in primary care and dental services at its four metro-Detroit clinics.
Neighborhood Service Organization (NSO), a leading community-based integrated health and human service agency, today announced that it has selected Community Health and Social Services (CHASS) Center, Inc. as its partner in the delivery of services in its four primary care clinics. Through this long-term partnership, CHASS and NSO have received a $625,000 grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration
(HRSA) to expand access to community-based healthcare in Detroit.
 
CHASS Center will provide primary care physicians and nurse practitioners and support the integration of primary care and dental services at NSO. NSO support staff in the clinics will remain intact and NSO remains responsible for all care coordination, supportive services and behavioral health for clients receiving care at its clinics.
 
NSO currently offers primary care, behavioral health, and dental services through its four clinics–also referred to as NSO 360 Wellness Centers–two in Detroit, one in Westland, Mich., and a fourth under construction as part of the $25 million Detroit Healthy Housing Campus on Mack and Gratiot.  
 
“NSO is building a robust, comprehensive model of care for the most vulnerable individuals in our community –creating access to quality holistic healthcare in neighborhoods where care is not accessible,” said NSO CEO Linda Little, BSN, MBA, RN, CCM. “We are committed to meeting people where they are to deliver the best care possible for the individuals we serve and to do so we cultivate relationships only with the best partners possible to enable us to deliver on our promise. Having had a longstanding relationship with CHASS, we are more than confident in their extensive history of providing care to communities like those NSO serves, as well as their aligned commitment to healthcare and overall excellence.”
 
CHASS Center brings more than 50 years of community-based primary care expertise, including a holistic approach to service delivery, as well as experience serving vulnerable populations.
 
The not-for-profit organization was formed to develop, promote and provide comprehensive, accessible and affordable quality primary health care and support services to all residents of the community, with special emphasis on the underserved African American and Latino populations.
 
“We are eager and excited to join NSO to bring our expertise and long-standing service and dedication to our communities for the benefit of our patients and those that currently do not have an established relationship with a primary care provider,” said CHASS CEO, Felix M. Valbuena, Jr., M.D., FAAFP. “Our collective emphasis on physical, oral and behavioral health as crucial elements of an individual’s overall health and wellness will bring additional opportunities for community members to be the optimal version of themselves in their daily activities.”
 
In addition to a strong relationship with Henry Ford Health, CHASS Center has been recognized as a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) since 1994, ensuring that it meets nationally accepted practice standards while reducing costs and improving quality of life for vulnerable individuals in their community.
 
The organization also has been honored as a Health Center Quality Leader by HRSA; a designation reserved for top performing FQHCs nationally. 
 
Fostering a holistic and multi-disciplinary care model with a person-centered treatment plan,
the NSO 360 Wellness Centers offer acute and chronic disease management, preventive care and screenings, physical exams, health promotion, care coordination, telehealth visits and on-site lab services to bridge gaps in a fragmented care system for the community’s most vulnerable populations. This includes individuals with severe or persistent mental Illness, those with intellectual or developmental disabilities, individuals experiencing homelessness or NSO’s Permanent Supportive Housing residents and surrounding neighborhood residents. NSO plans to expand services offered, serve more individuals and continue its vision to be a premier provider of holistic care for vulnerable populations.
 
Research supports the impact and the value when the synergy of an FQHC and Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic (CCBHC) are combined. NSO was named a CCBHC in 2021. As a CCBHC, community health centers attain the behavioral health status equivalent to FQHC and a way to provide whole person care for people experiencing behavioral health conditions, while also creating an integrated and financially sustainable model of patient care.
 
Since CCBHCs and FQHCs have aligned missions and overlapping patient populations, their joint efforts to coordinate care meaningfully enhance both the quality and scope of services available to the patients served by each provider. In fact, the Protecting Access to Medicare Act of 2014 (PAMA 2014) required that clinics participating in the Medicaid CCBHC demonstration maintain “care coordination” relationships with (among various other providers and services agencies) FQHCs. 
 
About Neighborhood Service Organization
Neighborhood Service Organization (NSO), a Detroit-based integrated health and human service agency, delivers community-based services and holistic programs for vulnerable populations. The agency provides behavioral health and primary care services, in addition to wraparound services that address barriers to housing, health and well-being. NSO serves nearly 12,000 people annually in Wayne and Oakland counties. Learn more by visiting www.NSO-MI.org.