InterFaith Health Center has unveiled its new home – a 25,000-square-foot facility which will enable the nonprofit to triple the number of patients served to 6,000/year within five years.
InterFaith provides comprehensive, affordable care for Knoxville’s working uninsured and underserved.
The “renovation celebration” was Monday, September 23, 2024, at 7005 Middlebrook Pike. It drew a tremendous crowd. Speakers included Lt. Gov. Randy McNally, state Sens. Becky Massey and Richard Briggs, state Rep. Elaine Davis, Knoxville Mayor Indya Kincannon and state Commissioner of Health Ralph Alvarado.
Posing with the rendering are Mayor Indya Kincannon, Lt. Gov. Randy McNally, Melissa Knight of InterFaith, Commissioner Ralph Alvarado M.D., state Sens. Becky Massey and Richard Briggs and state Rep. Elaine Davis.
“It’s not about the building; it’s about the people we serve,” said Melissa Knight, Interfaith executive director. “We’ve served 30,000 people in 33 years.” InterFaith operates with a small staff supplemented by volunteer physicians and health care providers. Currently operations are housed in four buildings.
Kincannon said many of us take health insurance for granted. But there are hard-working people in the community whose jobs don’t provide that benefit. “Instead of saying, but what can we do? The people of InterFaith are doing it daily and have been for 30 years.”
InterFaith has launched a $10 million capital campaign to purchase, renovate and equip the facility. Already, $7.1 million has been raised. Expected to open in fall 2025, the center will offer:
- Enhanced mental health services with group therapy, while adding therapists and creating a dedicated space for a psychiatrist.
- Medical exam rooms will nearly double from eight to 15 with dedicated rooms for dermatology, ophthalmology, ultrasound, X-ray and gynecology.
- Dental services will expand from seven to 15 exam rooms plus an onsite dental lab will help accommodate patient demand which has doubled every year since 2021.
- InterFaith’s new wellness and education area will include a food pantry and Healthy Lifestyles Kitchen with more space for workforce-development programming and other social services.
Currently, medical and mental health services are offered at 315 Gill Ave. off Broadway in North Knoxville. Dental services are offered at 2607 Kingston Pike, Ste. 185 in West Knox.