
NEWPORT NEWS — The Virginia Department of Health’s Peninsula Health District (PHD) has announced that it will move its staff to a new location in September 2023.
PHD, which services James City and York counties, as well as the cities of Williamsburg, Poquoson, and Newport News, will move to a new facility that once housed Stratford University, located at 836 J. Clyde Morris Blvd. in Newport News.
A March 17 release from PHD noted that the building will be newly-renovated facilities that will be designed to better serve the region’s residents and businesses. Additionally, said renovations will be made in order to provide for the unique needs of the district “for the delivery of quality health and wellness services.”
“The City of Newport News is pleased to be a part of this initiative that recognizes the importance of the Peninsula Health District and the significant impact they make on keeping our community healthy and safe,” said Newport News City Manager Cindy Rohlf. “This new facility will help the Peninsula Health District streamline and modernize their programs to meet the growing and changing needs of residents on the Peninsula.”
The new facility will still provide for current services including a Women’s Clinic, Pre-exposure Prophylaxis Program (PrEP) and AIDS Drug Assistance Program (ADAP), the Women Infant and Children Nutrition (WIC) program, Communicable Disease Control services and Community Health Nursing including Long-Term Care Screenings. The Environmental Health Department and Vital Records will also move to this new facility.
Additions to the Center will include spaces for child safety seat instruction as well as new educational programs for area residents. The Department’s Fiscal and Administration staff, as well as the Population Health and Emergency Planning and Response operations will join the rest of PHD by moving into the space.
Lastly, Riverside Health System is also looking at potential options for the newly-acquired PHD location. “Providing a seamless experience for our patients, visitors and team members is extremely important,” said Vice President of Support Services for Riverside Health System Mike Doucette. “We are looking at ways we can use the new parking spaces for team member parking, which would free up additional parking on the campus for patients and visitors.”
The goal for PHD is to work over multiple years to improve the service environment and to ensure that communities have access to quality health services. With its new location just off of Interstate 64, this will improve the goal of accessibility to area residents. Additionally, PHD is working with Hampton Roads Transit (HRT) to make sure that the location will be part of the regular transit routing schedule.
For more information on PHD and the services it offers, please visit its website.