Healthcare from the Heart
Mission and Vision “To provide affordable, comprehensive, compassionate and quality health care services in a linguistically competent and culturally sensitive manner to improve the health and well-being of our community.�
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Comprehensive Services
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Technology
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Provider Benefits California Living
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“To be a premier community health center offering a comprehensive array of high quality health care services and improving the health status of the communities we serve.�
About NEMS History
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North East Medical Services (NEMS) is one of the largest community health centers in the United States targeting the medically underserved Asian population.
about nems NEMS provides linguistically and culturally competent medical, dental, and ancillary health care services to all members of the San Francisco Bay Area community, especially low-income, uninsured or underinsured, immigrant, and monolingual Asian populations. NEMS accepts patients with Medi-Cal, Medicare, Healthy Families, Healthy Kids, and other public and private insurance plans. NEMS also offers a sliding fee scale to uninsured patients, and is a major provider for the city’s Healthy San Francisco health access program.
NEMS currently operates five clinics throughout San Francisco and one clinic in San Jose:
NEMS’ service area population is comprised of one-third of San Francisco’s residents, 48% of whom are Asian. Among the more than 43,000 NEMS members, 95% are Asian, 58% are uninsured, 57% have incomes below the Federal Poverty Level, and 16% are over the age of 65. NEMS’ culturally sensitive and multilingual staff excel at serving patients who speak little or no English, who make up 91% of all patients served.
• Chinatown/North Beach: 1520 Stockton Street, San Francisco, opened in 1978 • Visitacion Valley: 82 Leland Avenue, San Francisco, opened in 2000 • San Jose: 1715 Lundy Avenue, San Jose, opened in 2008 • Portola: 2574 San Bruno Avenue, San Francisco, opened in 2009 • Sunset: 1450 Noriega Street, San Francisco, opened in 2010 (previous clinic opened in 2004)
About NEMS
North East Medical Services (NEMS) is one of the largest community health centers in the United States targeting the medically underserved Asian population. Based in San Francisco, the non-profit community health center offers comprehensive health care services to a variety of patients, a majority of whom are uninsured or low-income. NEMS offers culturally-sensitive health care services in several Asian languages and dialects, including Cantonese, Mandarin, Vietnamese, Burmese, and Korean.
NEMS has over 50 highly trained full time physicians, nurse practitioners, dentists, and other health care professionals who not only speak Chinese dialects such as Cantonese, Mandarin, Taiwanese and Shanghainese, but who are also fluent in Vietnamese, Burmese, Korean, Spanish, Hindi, Armenian, and Tagalog. They can provide linguistically appropriate services to people from a variety of ethnic and cultural backgrounds.
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NEMS History
As NEMS grew over the years, so did the staff model of service delivery, and in 1986, our patients selected their primary care physician from a panel of NEMS staff physicians with specialty referrals made to physicians in the community. Over the last 40 years, more than 250,000 individuals have come through NEMS’ doors for health care services, generating close to one million patient visits.
NEMS history
Over the last 40 years, more than 250,000 individuals have come through NEMS’ doors for health care services, generating close to one million patient visits.
The inception of NEMS in 1968 stemmed from the enlightened vision of a concerned community, which wanted to give its members a medical home that was affordable, accessible, and culturally sensitive. That realization came to fruition in May of 1971, when NEMS opened its first clinic, with a staff and private practice physician model.
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Comprehensive Services Ancillary Services • Pharmacy Services • Laboratory Services • Radiology
Specialty Care Services • Cardiology • Podiatry • General Surgery • Ophthalmology • Gastroenterology
BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES
Dental Services
Optometry services
Health Promotion Services
Comprehensive Services
NEMS has over 50 highly trained full time physicians, nurse practitioners, dentists, and other health care professionals who not only speak Chinese dialects such as Cantonese, Mandarin, Taiwanese and Shanghainese, but who are also fluent in Vietnamese, Burmese, Korean, Spanish, Hindi, Armenian, and Tagalog.
Medical Services Primary Care Services: • Internal Medicine • Pediatrics • Family Practice • Obstetrics & Gynecology
PATIENT ELIGIBILITY & SOCIAL SERVICES
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technology
NEMS is committed to using state-of-the-art health information technology to better serve its patients.
In 2008, the NEMS Dental and Radiology Departments switched to digital x-ray systems to help increase accuracy and safety. Compared to traditional x-ray, the new systems save time and reduce exposure to radiation for both patients and staff Most recently, NEMS launched NextGen Electronic Medical Records at all of its clinic locations. These electronic medical records will be replacing traditional paper medical charts. Electronic records have increased efficiency and provide up-to-date health information.
Technology
NEMS is committed to using state-of-the-art health information technology to better serve its patients.
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Electronic Health Records The adoption of electronic health records (EHR) has been a significant transformation for NEMS. EHR has allowed NEMS to integrate all of its services to further its vision of providing a comprehensive array of high quality health care services and improving the health status of the communities it serves. NEMS’ partnership with NextGen Healthcare includes Electronic Practice Management (EPM), Electronic Medical Records (EMR), and Electronic Dental Records (EDR).
Technology
EHR has allowed nems to integrate all of its services to further its vision of providing a comprehensive array of high quality health care services and improving the health status of the communities it serves.
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With the recent implementation of PACS at NEMS, radiology information has never been so accessible.
Picture Archives & Communications Systems (PACS) is a medical imaging system that is dedicated to storing, retrieving, distributing, and presenting medical images in an independent format. The Infinitt PACS system has replaced all hard copy images with soft-copy (digital) reads and will also be offering remote accessibility. This digital/web-based functionality has allowed integration with the current electronic health records (EHR) systems. With the recent implementation of PACS at NEMS, radiology information has never been so accessible.
Technology
Radiology Picture Archives & Communications Systems (PACS)
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Paid Annual Leave • 1-7 years of employment – 3 weeks of annual leave (15 days) • 8-14 years of employment – 4 weeks of annual leave (20 days) • 15 and more years of employment – 5 weeks of annual leave (25 days) Newly hired employees shall accrue vacation from the first date of employment but will not be eligible to utilize their vacation leave until after the successful completion of the orientation period. Sick Leave 12 days of paid sick leave per year
2010 Fringe Benefit Package North East Medical Services’ Fringe Benefit Package was designed to provide quality compensation for eligible employees of the company. NEMS offers a competitive benefits package to complement the employee’s salary. The following is a summary of our many benefits. Specific eligibility and restrictions are described in more detail in the Personnel Policy Manual.
Educational Leave • Physicians, Dentists and Optometrists: 40 hours, $1000 per year for 24 hours • Pharmacists, Nurse Practitioners: $600 per year for 16 hours • All other eligible employees: $400 per year
Provider Benefits
Holidays • 9 paid holidays per year • 4 floating holidays per year. Floating holidays are available after the successful completion of the orientation period.
Educational leave is available after one year of service. For more detailed information, please check with the NEMS Human Resources Department.
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• Commuter Check Employees may elect to deduct from their pretax earnings up to $230 per month to purchase commuter check vouchers. • Medical Health Insurance Kaiser or HealthNet is available to employees and their dependents. Employees who elect HealthNet will need to make a monthly contribution.
• Employee Assistance Program Employee assistance and 24hour access to clinical referral centers available to employees and dependents.
• Dental Health Insurance Guardian Dental is available to employees and their dependents.
• Social Security As required • Worker’s Compensation Insurance As required
• Malpractice Insurance Employees are covered on-site and offsite only while providing services for NEMS patients. • Disability Insurance Short-term coverage is provided by the State of California. Long-term coverage is available to employees after the successful completion of the orientation period. • Pension Plan NEMS makes a contribution to the plan equal to 8% of each employee’s compensation each year. Contributions are at the discretion of the NEMS Board of Directors and are subject to change at anytime.
• Unemployment Insurance As required • Tax Shelter Annuity 403b (TSA) Plan Offering Employees may elect to put some of their pre-tax earnings into a TSA account. The contributions and control of the account are made solely by the employee.
Provider Benefits
• Vision Health Insurance Offered with medical insurance through Kaiser or Health Net.
• State License and DEA fees NEMS will reimburse half of the fees for State license and DEA fees for full-time Physicians, Dentists and Nurse Practitioners. • Parking For Physicians, Dentists, Pharmacists, Optometrists, and Nurse Practitioners for the days and times that they work at NEMS only.
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NEMS Forgivable Loan Program NEMS offers a forgivable loan to full-time MDs and DOs for the purpose of buying a new residence. NEMS will make a loan to you in the principal amount of $50,000. So long as you maintain full-time employment with NEMS, the outstanding principal balance will not accrue interest. Accordingly, NEMS will require that you sign and record a mortgage (deed of trust) in favor of NEMS as soon as practicable following closing on your new residence. Because some lenders object to second mortgages on property they finance, however, we will be flexible in working with you and your prime lender. If, however, you terminate your employment, then the outstanding principal balance will start to accrue interest, and the outstanding principal balance will be repayable in equal installments of $10,000 on each subsequent anniversary of your start date, together with all interest then accrued, until repaid. If you sell your residence before the loan is repaid in full, the outstanding principal balance and all accrued interest will become payable as of the closing date of the sale.
Provider Benefits
NEMS offers a forgivable loan to full-time MDs and DOs for the purpose of buying a new residence.
In addition to a mortgage, you will be required to sign a promissory note evidencing your obligations to NEMS with respect to this loan. In the event of any conflict between the terms of the note and the description of the loan in this letter, the note will control. Accordingly, you should read the note carefully. We can provide a copy of the form of the note that we use at your request. This program is offered at the sole discretion of NEMS Administration.
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San Francisco San Francisco Chinatown San Francisco’s Chinatown is the largest Chinatown outside of Asia and the oldest in North America. Chinatown is about eight blocks long and has two long main streets, Grant and Stockton. Three annual festivals honor the city’s Chinese heritage. The Chinese New Year and the Autumn Moon Festivals are among the most popular.
FISHERMAN’S WHARF/PIER 39 San Francisco’s Fisherman’s Wharf is a world famous tourist attraction and a thriving, vibrant local neighborhood and commercial area. Home to world-class dining, shopping, hotels and endless entertainment options, the Wharf is truly the place to start your San Francisco experience. Family entertainment is a neighborhood specialty. With our famous sea lions, Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Museum, The Aquarium of the Bay at PIER 39 and the World War II submarine USS Pampanito, Fisherman’s Wharf is the perfect place to bring the kids. The adjacent Ghirardelli Square has been converted to an open-air center filled with fun shops and restaurants. Here you can even see the company’s original chocolate-making machines.
CAlifornia living
San Francisco’s Chinatown is the largest Chinatown outside of Asia as well as the oldest Chinatown in North America.
North Beach Until the 1980s, the neighborhood was known as San Francisco’s Little Italy, home to a large Italian American population. It still holds many Italian restaurants today, though most of the Italian-Americans have long since left. It was also the historic center of the beatnik subculture. Today, North Beach is San Francisco’s main red light and nightlife district as well as a residential neighborhood populated mainly by young urban professionals and Chinese immigrants connected to the adjacent Chinatown.
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Golden Gate Park Golden Gate Park is San Francisco’s largest urban park. It is similar in shape to New York City’s Central Park, but 20% larger in size. Golden Gate is the third most visited park in the United States. Some of the main attractions Golden Gate Park has to offer includes: Conservatory of Flowers The Conservatory of Flowers is one of the world’s largest conservatories built of traditional wood and glass panes. Japanese Tea Garden The five-acre Japanese Tea Garden at Golden Gate Park is the oldest public Japanese garden in the United States. De Young Museum Named for M. H. de Young, the San Francisco newspaper magnate, the de Young Museum is a fine arts museum that was originally opened in 1921. Academy of Sciences One of San Francisco’s newest attractions, the California Academy of Sciences is one of the largest natural history museums in the world. The Academy of Sciences carries exhibits of reptiles and amphibians, astronomy, prehistoric life, various gems and minerals, earthquakes, and aquatic life.
CAlifornia living
The Japanese tea garden at Golden Gate Park is the oldest public Japanese garden in the United States.
San Francisco Botanical Garden This 55-acre arboretum contains more than 7,500 plant species. The arboretum also houses the Helen Crocker Russell Library, Northern California’s largest horticultural library. North East Medical Services 25
Alcatraz Located in the San Francisco Bay and often referred to as “The Rock,” Alcatraz is a small island that early-on served as a lighthouse, a military fortification, and both a military and federal prison until 1963. Today, you can reach the island by ferry for a grand tour of the prison. Palace of Fine Arts Inspired by Roman and Greek culture, The Palace of Fine Arts is located in the Marina district of San Francisco, originally constructed for the Panama-Pacific Exposition. The Palace of Fine Arts has been a favorite wedding location for couples throughout the San Francisco Bay Area.
Museums and the Arts From the de Young Museum’s Impressionism pieces to the San Francisco’s Museum of Modern Art and the California Academy of Sciences’ more modern and natural displays, San Francisco is renowned for having the most popular exhibits all year round. After a day at the museum, consider a night out at the San Francisco Symphony, San Francisco Ballet or the Opera House.
Nightlife San Francisco offers plenty to entertain, from sexy lounges to hip nightclubs to that quintessential Northern California establishment, the wine bar. From ballet and opera to Irish pubs, piano bars, hipster hangouts, and died-in-the-wool dives, San Francisco boasts a phenomenal assortment of after-dark entertainment, often on the colorful side. Education For nearly 144 years, Bay Area high schools have produced stars, geniuses and pioneers in everything from comedy to computers. Some of the top high schools in the San Francisco include Sacred Heart Catholic Preparatory School, the nationally renowned Lowell High School, and Drew High School. All of these and more offer students a chance to pursue a rigorous college preparatory curriculum and integrative, hands-on, and experiential learning opportunities to prepare for a bright future.
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Sports and Recreation Have the option to sail by the bay, hike through Golden Gate Park, or bike the hills of San Francisco or the Golden Gate Bridge. Whichever you choose, San Francisco supplies residents and visitors with a plethora of clubs, rentals and tours to choose from when deciding how to spend a beautiful day off outdoors.
Dining San Francisco is an exciting and culturally diverse city offering a host of restaurants and burgeoning foodie scene. Virtually every neighborhood has small but tasty eateries, clubs, or shopping that offer a taste of the “real city.” Each district has it’s own distinct “flavor” whether it be popular street food in the Mission District, upscale American cuisine downtown, Asian fusion near Chinatown, a taste of Italy in North Beach, or your favorite breakfast diner next door.
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San Francisco and Beyond Hiking
Mount Tamalpais Mount Tamalpais sometimes feels like the Bay Area’s Yosemite National Park. Inspiring and beautiful, Marin’s highest peak is known for its vast array of trail options. Many hike around the edges, selecting trails on the north slope near the lakes, and the harder-to-get-to neighborhood trailheads in Mill Valley. Most visitors focus on the trails right off Panoramic Drive, near Pantoll Ranger Station, and around the summit.
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Inspiring and beautiful, Marin’s highest peak is known for its vast array of trail options.
Marin Headlands Marin County is a hiker’s paradise with 3 national parks, 6 state parks, 24 county open space lands and 7 other parks and open space areas providing over 500 miles of magnificent trails. Forty-two percent of the land is open to the public.
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Explore Northern California’s Top Spots
Yosemite National Park Over 3.7 million people visit Yosemite each year and most spend their time in the seven square miles of Yosemite Valley. Yosemite is internationally recognized for its spectacular granite cliffs, waterfalls, clear streams, Giant Sequoia groves, and biological diversity. Almost 95% of the park is designated wilderness. El Capitan, of Yosemite Valley, is one of the most popular rock climbing destinations in the world. Other popular hiking domes are Sentinal Dome and Half Dome, which rise 3,000-4,800 feet above the valley floor. Yosemite is perfect for hiking, biking, camping, horseback riding, or simply enjoying walks through one of California’s largest blocks in the Sierra Nevada.
Monterey and Carmel-By-The-Sea Located just a couple hours south of San Francisco, the two towns are side by side with beauty, romance, and relaxed fun. You can visit the famous Monterey Bay Aquarium or take the 17-mile drive through Carmel. Perhaps one of the best-known things to do along the Monterey Peninsula is the 17-Mile Drive. A winding road that leads through an exclusive neighborhood and past scenic coastal views to the famed Pebble Beach, the 17-Mile Drive forms many visitors’ favorite memories. Lake Tahoe Lake Tahoe is one of the most famous attractions stretching from California into Nevada. Lake Tahoe is often referred to as the perfect year round vacation and wedding destination with terrific weather and breathtaking scenery. Lake Tahoe boasts of over 300 days of warm sunshine, 396 inches of annual snowfall, 18 world-class ski and snowboarding resorts, incredible golf courses, fantastic hotels, casinos and of course, beautiful blue Lake Tahoe itself.
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Napa Valley (Wine Country) Napa Valley is one of the premier travel destinations in the world. Whether you are wine tasting, dining at renowned restaurants like the French Laundry, pampering yourself with a mud bath in Calistoga, or just enjoying your stay at one of the many quaint bed and breakfasts, hotels or resorts, Napa is a spot of heaven on earth.
Big Sur A sparsely populated region of the Central California, Big Sur’s stunning views make it a popular tourist destination. A table with a view isn’t hard to come by in Big Sur. Neither is a sense of well-being. Cliffs, rocks, redwoods, and effervescent surf create an epic backdrop for recreation, romance and relaxed exploration.
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Join our team at nems and make a difference in the community and beyond.
If you are interested in serving the community and being a part of NEMS please contact: Kenneth Tai, Medical Director, at kenneth.tai@nems.org or our Human Resources Department at 415-391-9686.
contact
CONTACT
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Contact Information North East Medical Services 1520 Stockton Street San Francisco, CA 94133 t. 415.391.9686 www.nems.org