CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Veterans looking for healthcare services will soon have more options in the Coastal Bend.
The Corpus Christi VA Clinic is expanding later this year to a larger building not far from the current location. The new facility will be more than 59,000 square feet and have multiple floors.
“This new facility will really allow us to expand exponentially the amount of space available to deliver primary care services and expand and enhance those services,” said Dr. Jennifer Wood, Chief of Staff at VA Texas Valley Coastal Bend Healthcare System.
Wood said an expanded VA clinic in Corpus Christi will bring more services to more veterans. One of those veterans is Jay Hare, who served 15 years in the U.S. Navy.
“I had a heart condition," Hare said. "So, I needed to find somebody that could take care of me outside of the other medical coverage areas and the VA was my first choice.”
Wood said the new clinic will add at least two more primary care providers than the current location on Old Brownsville Road, bringing the total to 12. She said the radiology department will be expanded to include mammography and MRI technology. Hare said more services at one location will increase convenience.
“That would make it a lot easier, yes. Having more, having more available closer by, it would be a big, big plus,” Hare said.
Wood also said this is the first time a new VA clinic is coming to Corpus Christi since the original one was opened in the 1980s. She hopes that more veterans will be encouraged to come to the new location, saying there will be more than enough room for everyone.
“They’re concerned that they might be taking the spot of another veteran who needs that care," Dr. Wood said. "We don’t want veterans to be concerned with that, we are here to serve. We have the resources available to take care of them.”
As for Hare, he said a larger clinic coming soon is a positive thing for the South Texas veteran community.
“It means a lot. It means, it tells me that they’re looking out for us," Hare said. "They’re trying to take care of us to the best of their ability and they’re going above and beyond what is expected, I think.”
The first phase of patients is expected in December after construction finishes and staff are familiar with the building, according to VA Texas Valley Coastal Bend Healthcare System.