James Island Messenger - Alternative Medicine

Last week, Dr. Barron Nason opened a new Nason Medical Center on Folly Road near Maybank Highway in James Island. Many know Nason’s motto: “Don’t wait on healthcare. Let healthcare wait on you.” With the new 9,000- square-foot facility, Nason is putting a different spin on the average doctor’s visit for James Islanders.

Like other urgent care facilities, you don’t need an appointment or a referral to be seen by Nason Medical Centers. Unlike other facilities, the average wait time is about 15 minutes, and the cost averages one-sixth of what it would cost to go to the emergency room. The James Island location will be open seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

The decision to open a location in James Island was a simple one for Nason. “We wanted to bridge the gap so that patients who want to avail of our services don’t have to drive as far,” he says. With the James Island location, Nason hopes to collect patients from downtown and West Ashley, as well as the Island. “We look forward to serving the great people of James Island and we look forward to being a part of the community,” Nason said. Since the first facility opened in Mt. Pleasant in 2005, Nason Medical Center has seen more than 300,000 patients. In June, Nason said the three locations served about 10,000 patients. The other two locations are located in North Charleston.

Nason plans to open a location in Summerville in early 2012. The boom in the Nason Medical Center business comes from the increase in cost for healthcare and the increase in the amount of people uninsured. Nason thinks he will see even more patients as the year comes to an end due to the fact that many people have avoided going to the doctor unless absolutely necessary, causing many people’s ailments to only get worse. “Unfortunately, people are not practicing preventative medicine as much as they should be in this day and age,” Nason said.

The James Island location will offer 18 rooms with 10 cardiac monitored beds. There will be three trauma bays for conscious sedation procedures. Nason Medical Centers are all equipped to handle chest pain, shortness of breath, and trauma. An imaging center will also be offered in James Island, including CT scan technology, digital radiology, echocardiography, as well as ultrasounds. Nason Medical Centers share 10 doctors, 12 physician assistants, and a total of 175 employees.

Nason said the short wait times are what sets his business apart. “Time is important to everyone. Everyone would rather be doing something better than sitting in a waiting room,” he says. Nason also cites his patient costs as another reason for his success. “We accept all local forms of insurance and our business is doing well, which means we don’t have to jack up the prices,” he says.

West Of - New Christian School Opens in West Ashley

With a new location, a larger facility and a new name, the staff and students at Riverpointe Christian Academy are pretty excited about the upcoming school year.

The school was located in North Charleston under the name Riverbend Christian Academy. Having grown leaps and bounds in the 40 years they have been in service, their school needed an upgrade and the West Ashley location provided just that and more.

The new location is at 2508 Ashley River Road, formally Pierpont Baptist Church and now Grace on the Ashley. The merger of Grace on the Ashley and Riverpointe Christian Academy has been a very smooth transition, according to vice-principal Kathy Jones. “We both have a common goal and that is to reach out to families through the Lord,” Jones said.

The new facility offers 21,000 square feet of space. Jones said they definitely expect more students over time, but they really want to focus on expanding the preschool. “With so many working families in the Charleston area, parents need more options. We will not be a daycare per se. We will look toward education with a Christian focus,” Jones said.

Forty years ago, the school in North Charleston was just a daycare facility. The school later expanded to a full preschool serving two and four year olds. Later came elementary grades, then middle school, and five years ago the school expanded to offering education through 12th grade.

Their guiding principles are simple. “Parents have this God-given responsibility to educate their children,” Jones said. “It is our goal to foster that education.”

Jones also said Riverpointe Christian Academy takes pride in the quality education she believes each child receives. “We have the luxury to deal with each child individually and that helps us to see what is unique in each child and how they learn,” she said.

Students also have the option to participate in sports, such as volleyball, basketball, cross-country and track. Music, visual arts, drama, and chapel are also offered as a part of student life.

Riverpointe Christian Academy will offer their after school program to all children in the Charleston area whether they attend there regularly or not. Jones said the faculty is working with Charleston County to offer a drop-off service from the public schools.

Information about the school’s application process, tuition, and fees, as well as uniforms and a list of school supplies can be found on the Riverpointe Christian Academy’s website, www.riverpointechristian.org. The site also provides a list of teachers and faculty.

An open house will take place on Aug. 4 and 8 from 1-7 p.m. Jones is excited about the enrollment of new students and believes the location in West Ashley will encourage many new families to enroll in the school. “We are so excited to bring our affordable private Christian school to West Ashley and we look forward to all the opportunities God has in store for us here,” she said.