Staff wait to greet patients at the Wallowa Memorial Medical Clinic in Joseph on Thursday, June 30, 2022. The clinic now has Saturday hours.

JOSEPH — Responding to customer surveys, the Wallowa Memorial Medical Clinic in Joseph began in June to keep office hours on Saturdays, according to a hospital spokeswoman.

“We listened to the people and wanted to give them what they asked for,” said Brooke Pace, communications and public relations director for Wallowa Memorial Hospital.

The clinic is open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturdays. That is in addition to 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Monday through Friday.

The clinic, which opened April 2, 2021 after five years of planning, began as a basic primary care facility. Staff surveyed local residents who came to the new facility on tours to determine what they desired in their new clinic.

“We started for a number of reasons,” Pace said of the reasons for opening on Saturdays. “Access is incredibly important to us at Wallowa Memorial,” she said. “When building the clinic, we conducted tours of the facility and asked the community about hours and what they wanted to see. There was a strong desire for Saturday hours, as many people can’t get away from work or other responsibilities during the week. People can schedule a visit ahead of time or make a same-day appointment by calling. … We are also hoping that by having hours on Saturday, both locals and tourists won’t end up in the emergency department for nonemergent medical needs.”

Beginning Saturday hours in June worked well with what goes on in Joseph during the summer. As tourism increases and more people are in town, there’s an accompanying need for health care — but not necessarily at a hospital.

Pace said the clinic is there for primary care, but “things they didn’t need to actually go to an emergency room for.”

The clinic is staffed with three physicians, five nurse practitioners, one physician’s assistant, a general surgeon Dr. Ken Rose, three behavioral health providers and three staff nurses. It is available for annual examinations, general surgery, obstetrics and gynecological care, vaccines, health coaching and group classes, programs for diabetes and chronic pain, and services from visiting nurses for the homebound.

In addition to the hospital in Enterprise, Wallowa Memorial Medical has four clinics: one each in Joseph, Enterprise, downtown Enterprise and Wallowa. They all are under the umbrella of the Wallowa Health Care District, Pace said.

She said the new Saturday hours will not just be for the summer tourist season and will continue all year long.

“It will continue past the summer months,” she said.

The clinic has a history of serving the county’s health care needs since 2015 when Wallowa Mountain Medical — formed in 1991 by Dr. Devee Boyd — joined the Wallowa County Health Care District.

What: Primary care clinic

Where: 800 N. Main St, Joseph

When: Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-5 p.m.; Saturday 9 a.m.-4 p.m.

Phone: 541-426-7900; hospital 541-426-3111

Online appointments: wallowamemorialmedicalclinics.org.