History of Sea Mar Community Health Centers
Sea Mar Community Health Centers was organized by a group of Latino community leaders and health activists who dreamed of developing a comprehensive health center for the Latino community in Seattle, with satellite clinics in rural communities in western Washington. They began in 1978 with one small clinic in the South Park neighborhood of Seattle. Today, Sea Mar is one of the largest providers of health and human services, including community and migrant primary medical and dental care, obstetrics and gynecology, minor outpatient surgery, laboratory and radiology services, outpatient and inpatient behavioral health and substance abuse treatment services; social services and case management, maternal support services, migrant and homeless support services, health education and nutrition programs, pharmacy services, community- and facility-based long-term care services, and child care.
Sea Mar's mission has always been to serve low-income, underserved, and uninsured communities in western Washington, with a specialization in services to the Latino population. For the past twenty-seven years, Sea Mar has consistently provided innovative leadership at the local, regional, and national levels in the delivery of bilingual and culturally appropriate health care and social services.
Highlights of Sea Mar's History
1976
- A group of Latino community leaders begins to look at how best to address the health care needs of the Spanish-speaking community in western Washington, particularly in terms of accessibility and cost. They establish a "free" clinic, staffed by volunteers, in the Rainier Valley area of Seattle.
1977
- Sea Mar incorporates as a non-profit organization.
1978
- With approximately $300,000 in funding from the federal government, Sea Mar purchases a clinic in the South Park neighborhood of Seattle, from a retiring private-practice physician. The Seattle Medical Clinic offers primary medical care, as well as X-ray, laboratory, WIC, and nutrition services. Sea Mar continues to care for the retiring doctor's clients, many of whom are elderly, and the need for long-term care becomes evident.
1979
- Sea Mar begins to offer social services and health education programs in its South Park location.
- Sea Mar becomes a Chore Services contractor for the Washington Department of Social and Health Services' Division on Aging and begins providing home-care services to low-income elderly and disabled persons.
1980
- The Seattle Dental Clinic opens in South Park.
- Sea Mar obtains a Certificate of Need from the State of Washington for a licensed Medicare- and Medicaid-certified Home Health Agency in South Park, and begins to provide skilled nursing care, home health aides, and rehabilitative services.
1982
- The Seattle Medical Clinic opens a pharmacy in South Park.
1985
- The Seattle Medical Clinic adds an OB/GYN program.
- The Mount Vernon Medical Clinic opens to serve the growing Hispanic community in Skagit County, realizing Sea Mar's founders' dream of offering health services to migrant farm workers.
1986
- The Mount Vernon Clinic adds dental care services.
1988
- The Bellingham Medical Clinic opens to serve clients in Whatcom County.
- The Mount Vernon Clinic adds mental health and homeless support services, and an emergency food and clothing bank.
1989
- The Marysville Medical Clinic opens, realizing the dream of Sea Mar's founders to serve the Latino populations of both Seattle and Marysville. (Sea Mar stands for “Seattle Marysville.)
- The Bellingham Clinic begins providing state-licensed, bilingual/bicultural outpatient behavioral health services, primarily to Latinos, seasonal farm workers, and homeless people.
1990
- Sea Mar purchases another building in South Park and expands the Seattle Dental Clinic's services to include pediatric dentistry.
1991
- The Lynden Medical Clinic opens, providing primary medical care to this small farming community in rural Whatcom County.
1992
- In response to the need for substance-abuse treatment services for Latinos and migrant/seasonal farm workers, Sea Mar adds state-licensed, county-funded bilingual/bicultural outpatient substance abuse treatment to its behavioral health services in Bellingham.
- The Marysville Medical Clinic moves to a larger facility in the Smokey Point area of Arlington.
1993
- Sea Mar begins providing state-licensed, bilingual/bicultural outpatient behavioral health services in Everett, in Snohomish County, primarily to Latino and indigent clients.
- The Lynden Clinic adds dental services.
1994
- The Seattle Clinic adds behavioral health services.
- The Burlington Dental Clinic opens, expanding dental services in Skagit County.
- Sea Mar opens an inpatient alcohol and substance abuse treatment facility in Tacoma, adding Pierce County to the list of counties receiving services.
- Realizing another dream of its founders, Sea Mar opens an intergenerational Community Care Center on Catholic Hill in the South Park neighborhood of Seattle. It consists of two brand new buildings and includes a one-hundred-bed skilled nursing facility with a nineteen-bed Alzheimer's unit and a child development center with the capacity to care for one-hundred-twenty children from infants to twelve-year-olds.
1995
- Tacoma Medical Clinic opens, expanding services in Pierce County to include primary medical care.
- Mount Vernon Dental Clinic expands to include pediatric dentistry.
- The dental program in the Lynden Clinic moves to the Bellingham Clinic.
- The Nooksak Dental Clinic opens to serve members of the Nooksak Indian Tribe and migrant farm workers, as well as the general population in this rural part of Whatcom County.
- Sea Mar begins providing state-licensed, bilingual/bicultural outpatient behavioral health services in Tacoma, primarily to Latino and indigent clients.
- With the opening of a clinic in Monroe , Sea Mar adds state-licensed, county-funded, bilingual/bicultural outpatient substance abuse treatment services to its behavioral health services in Snohomish County.
1996
- Sea Mar opens an inpatient alcohol and substance abuse treatment center for youth and adolescents in north Seattle, and shifts the focus of the Tacoma inpatient treatment center to adults only.
- Sea Mar begins holding its annual charity golf tournaments, the proceeds of which fund college scholarships for the children of migrant and seasonal farm worker families, as well as community Christmas parties and the annual Fiestas Patrias celebration.
1997
- The Seattle inpatient alcohol and substance abuse treatment center for youth and adolescents relocates to a newly remodeled building in Des Moines.
- The Monroe Outreach Clinic opens, offering limited Medical Services.
- The Tacoma Clinic adds dental services.
1998
- Sea Mar adds state-licensed, bilingual/bicultural outpatient mental health services to its services in King County, primarily to serve Latino and indigent clients.
- The Seattle Medical Clinic adds MRI services.
1999
- Sea Mar opens a WIC/Nutrition program office in Normandy Park to serve more than 800 clients, mostly women and children.
- Sea Mar purchases a private medical practice in Bonney Lake, establishing a second medical clinic in Pierce County.
- Visions Youth Treatment Center opens in Bellingham, providing Level II secure inpatient alcohol and substance abuse treatment for teenage girls.
- The Monroe Outreach Clinic closes.
- The Lynden Medical Clinic moves to a newer, larger facility in Everson.
2000
- Sea Mar purchases a medical clinic in Vancouver, Washington, and begins providing primary medical and dental services in Clark County.
- The Sea Mar Motel, a migrant farm worker family housing facility, opens in a former Pasco Hotel in Franklin County. Sea Mar now provides services in seven Washington counties.
2001
- Sea Mar takes over operation of the Community Care Clinic in Olympia, providing medical, dental, and behavioral health services in Thurston County. Sea Mar now provides services in eight Washington counties.
- The Marysville Medical and Dental Clinic moves to a new, larger facility in Marysville.
- Sea Mar adds state-licensed, county-funded, bilingual/bicultural outpatient substance abuse treatment services in Tumwater, in Thurston County.
- The Nooksak Dental Clinic closes.
2002
- The Bellingham Medical and Dental Clinic moves to a new, larger facility.
- The inpatient alcohol and substance abuse treatment center for youth in Des Moines, which had closed in 2001, reopens as an adult recovery house.
2003
- Sea Mar begins the Youth Boxing mentoring program in Seattle.
- Sea Mar opens an OB/GYN Clinic in Mt. Vernon.
- The Vancouver Medical Clinic moves to a new facility, expanding the space available for both medical and dental services in Clark County.
- The Bonney Lake Medical Clinic closes.
2004
- The Puyallup Medical Clinic opens, expanding services in Pierce County.
- Renacer Youth Treatment Center opens in Seattle, providing Level II Secure inpatient alcohol and substance abuse treatment for teenage boys.
2005
- The Puyallup Dental Clinic opens in the same facility as the Puyallup Medical Clinic.
- The Sea Mar Community Center opens in Wapato, providing recreational and educational activities to children, youth, and adults.
- Sea Mar opens WIC offices in Fife and Milton.
- Sea Mar opens Urgent Care clinic in Burien
2006
- Sea Mar takes over operation of the Peninsula Community Health Service center, providing medical, dental, to Grey's Harbor County. Sea Mar now provides services in Nine Washington counties
- Sea Mar opens up a pediatric urgent care and dental clinic in White Center
2007
- Sea Mar opens up a pediatric urgent care and dental clinic in White Center
Today
- Sea Mar operates ten medical clinics and ten dental clinics. In addition to primary medical and dental care, it offers obstetrics and gynecology, minor outpatient surgery, and pediatric orthodontic care. It operates four inpatient and six outpatient behavioral health and/or alcohol and substance abuse treatment centers, including the only Spanish-only inpatient treatment program in the state. In addition to medical, dental, and behavioral health care, it offers laboratory, radiology, pharmacy, WIC, nutrition education, Maternal Support Services, homeless and migrant support, home-health and home-care services, youth mentoring, and citizenship and ESL classes. It operates a long-term care facility and child development center that jointly utilize an intergenerational care model. It also sponsors a weekly Spanish-language radio program about health. In eastern Washington, it operates a community center in Wapato and provides housing to migrant farm workers and their families in Pasco.
- In 2004, Sea Mar provided about 307,000 individual services to more than 83,000 people in eight counties in Washington State. About 46% of Sea Mar's clients are Latinos and about 44% are Euro-Americans. The largest subgroup of these clients are Russian or Ukrainian immigrants. More than half of Sea Mar's clients have incomes at or below 100% of the federal poverty level and 90% of them have either public insurance (e.g., Medicaid, Basic Health, SCHIP) or are uninsured.
- Plans for 2005 include moving the Vancouver Medical Clinic into a larger facility, opening medical clinics in Bellevue and White Center, beginning construction on a low-income housing project in South Park, and expanding the WIC program to Marysville.