New county health center opens in Paso Robles
Newly opened county health center at 805 4th St., Paso Robles.
Clinic brings together public health, behavioral health services
– County of San Luis Obispo Behavioral Health and County of San Luis Obispo Public Health clinics are now together under one roof at a new facility in Paso Robles, offering a wide range of services to those who live or work in northern San Luis Obispo County. The new facility is located at 805 4th Street, with parking nearby.
The first floor of the building, which opened in Dec. 2021, is home to behavioral health’s drug and alcohol division which provides a variety of services and programs to assist community members affected by substance use disorders. This includes recovery services, outpatient treatment, and driving under the influence programs.
On the second floor of the building, Behavioral Health provides Youth Mental Health Services and substance abuse treatment for youth and families including individual and family therapy programs, rehabilitation, case management, and more. All behavioral health services are designed to assist individuals living with mental illness and/or substance use disorders to achieve the highest quality of life by providing programs that center around the overall needs of clients and their families.
“The beauty of this building being on the corner of 4th Street and Spring Street is that we are truly a one-stop shop for community members in North County,” said Behavioral Health Program Supervisor Kimberly Mott. “Our team is committed to providing a wide array of Behavioral Health services under one roof so we can better help individuals and their families achieve overall wellness and recovery in multiple areas of their lives.”
Public health, which moved into the new space in July, is located on the second floor of the building. Public health services include the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) nutrition program and reproductive health programs that provide a wide range of friendly, confidential, free, or low-cost reproductive and sexual health services for women, men, and teens.
“We are so proud of this new state-of-the-art facility, which is conveniently located in downtown Paso Robles and easily accessible to our community, including those who use public transportation,” said Supervising Public Health Nurse Jenny Taranto. “Through this new facility, you can get all types of healthcare services, such as birth control, emergency contraception, and testing for sexually transmitted infections. We also have a full vaccine clinic where we administer COVID-19 vaccinations and boosters, as well as a host of travel vaccines.”
These services include:
- Birth control (including IUDs and birth control pills)
- Free condoms (just stop by during open hours – basket is by the front door)
- Emergency contraception (Plan B)
- Pregnancy testing
- Cancer screening (pap smears and breast exams)
- HIV testing
- STD testing and treatment
- PrEP and PEP (HIV prevention)
- Vaccination, including both routine and travel vaccines
“Any community member can use these services and you do not need a physician referral to access the clinic,” said Taranto. “Many community members may be eligible for no-cost services through Family PACT, Medi-Cal or Medicare. Public Health also accepts private insurance. For all other community members, fees are based on a sliding scale.”
The clinic in Paso Robles is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and services are available by appointment at (805) 237-3050. Community members looking to start mental health or drug and alcohol services should call 800-838-1381.
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