Medical clinic opens in 192nd Plaza

A medical clinic has moved from Washougal to Camas.

Sarah Russell, former owner of Columbia Gorge Medical Center, provides family medical care, annual physicals and drug screenings as the co-owner and medical director at Grass Valley Medical Clinic, in the 192nd Plaza.

She also treats patients who have filed worker’s compensation claims, as well as individuals who need sports and Department of Transportation physicals, mole and wart removals, flu shots, blood sugar checks and pregnancy tests.

“We’re looking at making it more of an integrated medical location – possibly offering chiropractic and naturopathic medicine – out of the same building,” Russell said. “We want it to be a more innovative medical practice that best meets the people’s needs rather than the standard medical office.”

She said the original intention was to expand the Columbia Gorge Medical Center practice in Washougal to Camas.

However, the office in the Evergreen Marketplace closed in January.

“The owner of the complex, Dean Kirkland, picked us to locate in the 192nd Plaza,” Russell said. “He pursued us about having space there.

“There is a lot of new growth and development, so there is a need for more medical services there,” she added.

Russell said the lease costs were too high for their office space in Washougal.

“We had a lot of Washington Medicaid patients,” she said. “Financially, we could not do it with the patient base we had. Medicaid and Medicare made cuts, and there were uninsured patients. I’d love to serve that population, but financially we could just not keep our doors open. We started fresh with the new management guidelines so we are financially sustainable as a medical clinic.

“There are plans for providing care on a monthly basis in Washougal,” Russell added. “It’s really sad to me to not have as much of an open door policy as we did at the previous location, but I hope to be able to work with local churches to meet ongoing medical needs in the Camas-Washougal area in the future.”

The Grass Valley Medical Clinic features three exam rooms and a lab.

The staff includes Registered Nurse Maree Purdy and Medical Assistant Cari Lange.

Russell is an advanced nurse practitioner with a specialty in family practice. She received her master’s degree from Indiana State University in 2004. Russell has practiced in urgent care clinics and a federally funded health clinic.

Russell’s husband Jon is the co-owner of the medical center. They have three children.

The clinic is located at 2005 S.E. 192nd Ave., Ste. 201. For more information, call 450-5990 or visit www.gvmclinic.com.