UI to move most of its primary care to 'underserved' southeast Iowa City

University of Iowa Health Care will build a new primary care facility in southeast Iowa City by 2025, a move that would relocate most of its primary care services from its main campus to improve health care access in the part of the city with the greatest need it, officials announced Wednesday.

Many of the details are still being determined, but health system officials said in a news release from the city government Wednesday that construction of the new facility will address a gap in health care access for an "underserved" section of the city while providing additional experience for primary care doctors in training.

“Having a relationship with a primary care doctor for regular, preventative care is shown to have better long-term health outcomes,” Kim Hunter, interim CEO and chief nurse executive at University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics, said in a statement. “By adding services in southeast Iowa City, we are increasing local access and reducing barriers for individuals seeking high-quality care.”

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Cost and construction timeline still unknown

The exact location of the new facility, as well as the timeline for construction and the projected cost, is still being determined, said UI Health Care spokesperson Laura Shoemaker.

"We have narrowed potential development locations to the southeast side of Iowa City, where we determined there is the greatest need based on an analysis of current health care access in Iowa City," she said.

The building is projected to be about 65,000 square feet, with exam rooms, diagnostic imaging, pathology lab and other associated spaces, Shoemaker said.

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Though officials with UIHC said the plan is to house the majority of its primary care services at the new building, they are still determining how many providers will work out of the space and how many patients they can expect to serve there. It's also unclear what will happen to the space currently housing primary care services on the main campus.

The city has not received any request for funding for the new facility, said Mayor Bruce Teague. However, he said the City Council will be collaborative as the health system moves forward with this project.

"I’m excited for this opportunity," Teague said. "It’s a great opportunity for all community members, and I’m happy University of Iowa Health Care is being very intentional and putting this in our southeast side."

Shoemaker said UIHC issued a request for qualifications, or RFQ, in November to seek a third-party development team to help acquire land, design and construct a medical building that "will increase access to primary medical care for the local community as well as train physicians in a setting most similar to other Iowa primary care offices."

The RFQ narrowed the field of potential partners. Those vendors were issued a request for proposals in January for the project, but officials did not say when that partner would be awarded the contract.

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Lack of primary care leads to increase in emergency room visits, UIHC says

Though the southeast area is the most densely populated part of Iowa City, health system officials say it has the fewest options for primary care. Currently, it has a UI clinic that houses primary care on Scott Boulevard, a UI Quick Care clinic and the Iowa City Free Medical Clinic.

"Many residents must travel outside of their immediate community to access care," said Wednesday's news release.

As a result, health system officials say they have seen southeast Iowa City residents utilize the emergency department and urgent care clinics at rates higher than residents of other parts of Iowa City and Johnson County. According to data provided by UI Health Care, emergency department visits from those residents were more than 300 per 1,000 residents in fiscal year 2022. By comparison, the ZIP code that includes downtown Iowa City had about 250 visits per 1,000 residents during the same period.

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Studies show that lack of convenient primary care options can result in people relying on emergency rooms and urgent care clinics for their care, according to the news release. That can compound poor health outcomes for black and brown residents of southeast Iowa City, who face greater economic and societal barriers to accessing care.

"Not only does this increase health care costs and emergency care backlogs, but it also increases a person’s likelihood of developing chronic diseases," the news release said.

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This project is not the result of a formal project between the city and UIHC, but Teague said officials from both have been in conversations about the health system's need to serve more patients outside of the main campus in downtown Iowa City. As they discussed the need to create better access for underserved populations, Teague said the southeast side "was identified as a location that accomplishes their goals and helps make biggest impact."

"This will decrease barriers and allow greater access long-term primary care physicians," Teague said. "We expect people will have better long-term health because of this access."

Michaela Ramm covers health care for the Des Moines Register. She can be reached at mramm@registermedia.com, at (319) 339-7354 or on Twitter at @Michaela_Ramm.

This article originally appeared on Iowa City Press-Citizen: SE Iowa City to get UI primary care facility, filling heath care gap