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Western Berks Free Medical Clinic Names Executive Director, Board President

by Western Berks Free Medical Clinic

Jul 29, 2022

J. Gregory Colahan

Western Berks Free Medical Clinic, Robesonia, announced the appointment of J. Gregory Colahan, Cumru Township, as its first executive director, effective August 1.

Also effective August 1, Anne Fisher, MEd, BSN, RN, CSN, Kutztown, was elected president of its board of directors, filling the vacancy left by Colahan’s appointment to the Clinic staff.

Colahan, a retired practice director from Oracle Corporation, joined Western Berks Free Medical Clinic’s board of directors in 2016.  He was elected president in 2021, chaired its audit and compliance committee, and held memberships on its governance and income development committees and strategic planning and bylaws task forces.

Fisher currently serves as director of student support for Reading School District.  She was elected to the Clinic’s board of directors in 2019, becoming its vice president in 2021.  She is a member of its governance committee, and created and continues to co-chair its quality improvement committee whose work led to the Clinic’s silver rating awarded by the National Association of Free and Charitable Clinics.

Anne Fisher, MEd, BSN, RN, CSN

According to Fisher, the staff position of executive director was created at this time “to intensify the Clinic’s focus on the financial, human, and operational resources necessary to establish a satellite location in the city of Reading.”  Opening later this year, the satellite at Mary’s Shelter campus (615 Kenhorst Boulevard, Reading) is expected to accommodate an additional 100 uninsured patients monthly for adult primary, women’s care, and chronic disease management.

Colahan, Fisher added, will also utilize his decades of IT expertise to shepherd the installation of an electronic health record, as well as manage daily operations at both Robesonia and Reading locations.  “With increasing staff attention on operational matters, the Clinic’s board can focus on strategic issues,” she noted.

Western Berks Free Medical Clinic opened inside St. Daniel’s Lutheran Church, 480 Big Spring Road, Robesonia, in October 2002.  An independent 501 (c)(3) organization, this volunteer-driven free clinic has provided more than 10,000 primary and chronic appointments at no cost to individual patients, and relies exclusively on financial and in-kind donations to cover its expenses.

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