Chief Executive Officer in Oregon

The Siskiyou Community Health Center (SCHC) began in 1973 as the Takilma People’s Clinic in the Illinois Valley of Southern Oregon. Established by volunteers in response to a local healthcare crisis, the clinic initially operated from a repurposed farmhouse. Dr. Jim Shames, originally from the Portland area, joined to train community members and chose to remain, becoming Medical Director, a role he held until 2003. 

Today, SCHC’s is a not-for-profit, Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) with a main location in a 34K square foot LEED-certified building in Historic Grants Pass Oregon known for its active outdoor lifestyle along the Rogue River, just 30 miles south of the Medford Oregon International Airport. 

Additional locations include facilities in Cave Junction, Medford, multiple school-based health clinics, and a mobile dental unit. SCHC offers a comprehensive range of services, including primary medical care for...

COIPA (Central Oregon Independent Practice Association) was founded in 1993 as a non-profit dedicated to promoting the financial viability of its independent practices.

COIPA supports independent medical practices across a 750+ member network across the counties of Central Oregon and the Columbia Gorge. By maximizing reimbursements and minimizing administrative costs, COIPA enables these practices to maintain their independence. This allows clinicians to focus more on delivering excellent healthcare to communities, supported by the strength of COIPA’s services.

The COIPA’s network consists of nurse practitioners, physicians, nurse midwives, and integrated behavioral health clinicians supported by a range of COIPA services, including access to value-based contracting and provider enrollment, billing, credentialing, and consulting to help independent medical practices focus on delivering quality healthcare with COIPA leveraging the power of their network to provide...