By Taylor Helle
The Quest Center for Integrative Health’s mission is to “provide integrative healthcare services, community and education to all people seeking a wellness-focused approach to living and dying.” This month, Quest is making the move to a bigger and better location in Multnomah County. The new building increases capacity by 25 percent and will allow for more cohesive, coordinated and centralized care.
David Eisen, Executive Director at Quest, and Kate Zipse, Development and Communications Manager, want the community to know that Quest is unique from other healthcare providers as they emphasize the importance of integrative and holistic care in their approach to wellness, pain and recovery. This is reflected in the variety of services offered, including acupuncture, nutrition, group counseling, peer support, movement classes, etc.
The move will assist in bringing the community back together in the aftermath of the pandemic, when several aspects of care were forced to go virtual. “This new location will allow for better communication, better coordination and more opportunities for team members to re-bond after the pandemic,” Eisen said.
Eisen describes the new building as having a beautiful and welcoming atmosphere, with big, exposed wood ceilings on the second floor, a room large enough for the entire staff to meet and all new IT infrastructure for connectivity. The new building will also provide increased accessibility for community members, including a lift to help people get to the second floor and more ADA bathrooms for community members with mobility challenges.
Oregon is dead last in access to many services for mental health and addiction recovery, which leads to major issues such as houselessness, Zipse explains. To combat this, Quest’s programs, such as wellness integrity and sustainable health (WISH) for pain management and finding and sustaining recovery (FSR) for addiction recovery, aim to meet individuals where they are. These approaches holistically endorse the identity of individuals to create sustainable and supportive plans to recover.
Zipse emphasizes that cultural competence is highlighted in Quest care as well. Their doors are open to all who seek a life of health and wellness, as Quest strongly believes that all clients should have access to excellent service regardless of their income, insurance, gender, sexual orientation, religion, national origin, race, ethnicity, disability, veteran status, HIV status or chronic health conditions. Unique programs are available specifically for marginalized populations, such as the TRI program which partners with Miracles Club to serve African American community members.
Peers and providers are matched to community member groups such as LGBTQIA+ community members. Quest is the oldest behavioral health home for the LGBTQIA+ community in Portland and Eisen says the new location will enable Quest to increase their capacity to serve that community.
The Quest faculty are extremely excited for the new opportunities that this move will bring. “Because of our integrated care model, it makes it a really special program that sustains people within their recovery journey. It will be key to have providers and community members all connected and working together under one roof,” Zipse said.
The new Quest Multnomah address is 3231 SE 50th Ave. A grand opening open house is to be expected in the next couple of months to celebrate the move. Visit quest-center.org for details as they become available.Â
Photo by Kate Zipse
