Health Center History
A story of how one heart started a movement in the Heart of Rockwood
When Edwin Wallace’s generous heart stopped is when Wallace Medical Concern began to live. Dr. James Reuler then saw a need and breathed life into it, serving unhoused, uninsured, and disenfranchised people in Old Town Portland starting in 1984, with full liability coverage from Multnomah County, volunteer doctors, and medical students with filled tackle boxes of supplies, carried to those in need.
Wallace Medical Concern (now Wallace Medical & Dental) began with one donated room, on the third floor of the Old Town’s Estate Hotel. It was the first clinic location opened, for those without access to care, to be serviced.
Over the next fifteen years, Wallace expanded by opening clinics for unhoused youth and people living in shelters at both – The Greenhouse and The Transition Projects.
During this period, Wallace had to move its main clinic multiple times, always securing rent free space, as it continued to grow, serving the patients affected by high unemployment rates and cuts to many social programs.
In 1987, Kathy Hammock became WMC’s (Wall Medical Concerns) first hired employee and served as the lifeblood Executive Director. Her pioneering dedication continues to be one of the amazing forces behind its continued mission and success.
In 1999, as the Oregon Health Plan launched, Wallace ventured into East County, finding that its patients were moving there due to gentrification and the discovery of more persons in urgent need of care.
Key History Facts:
- Wallace’s first foray was in Sandy at Townsend Farms for seasonal workers. This clinic had Wallace’s first Spanish Medical Interpreters to assist in care.
- The Sno Cap agency housed the first clinic space for patients in East County.
- WMC served patients in Old Town and East County with over 90% volunteers until 2007, when the Estate Hotel closed. The organization then moved to East County, into a new space donated by Providence on NW Burnside in Gresham.
Now anchored in East County, Wallace made many changes in response to the well-established Oregon Health Plan and echoes of the recession. The Board of Directors approved a three-year expansion plan to serve more patients. It also moved forward with hiring a new Executive Director, as Kathy Hammock wished to focus on other endeavors. In 2008, Lisa Cline was hired as the new Executive Director and continues to be.
Two wonderful surprises arose amid the changing of the guard: a van and a new direction. Multnomah County Health Department asked WMC to take over its Mobile Medical Clinic, which made it possible for Wallace to move to where more locations where the services were needed; then hirimg their first doctor, Dr. Anna Jimenez.
The MMC (Mobile Medical Clinic) visited seasonal farmworkers and provided over 10,000 health presentations outside the Mexican Consulate in downtown Portland (a partnership with the Mexican Government).
The second surprise came when Multnomah County Health Department asked Wallace to apply to become a Federally Qualified Health Center. If awarded this designation, Wallace would become a primary health clinic, providing ongoing care for patients rather than urgent care.
The huge shift occurred in 2012 when Wallace Medical Concern became an FQHC or Community Health Clinic, coinciding with the Affordable Care Act—a perfect match.
Key History Facts:
- In 2011-2012, Wallace opened its first primary care clinic at Human Solutions’ new building on 181st in Rockwood.
- Wallace put its roots down in Rockwood and added a dental clinic in 2016, which still operates at that location.
- Dr. Stuart Currie joined Wallace as Medical Officer in 2018. His expertise has beautifully steered Wallace’s primary care services, helping navigate through the pandemic by adding telehealth and implementing large-scale immunizations.
In 2020, Wallace moved into the Lumen Building in Downtown Rockwood, where it thrives today. Providing whole-patient care and speaking to its patients in over 50 languages to ensure they receive the care they need, while its beautiful medical and dental clinics now employ over 100 people.
