Boothbay Region Health Center opened on Monday, Jan. 8 in the same office as Dr. Nancy Oliphant’s practice at the Meadow Mall. Practice manager Lynn Thompson said Oliphant, who remains at the office under the new banner, carries her 800-some-odd patients into the non-profit health center. By noon, said Thompson, there were already 10-15 inquiries from non-established patients coming in or calling about services the center offers.

“It’s a continuing practice,” said Thompson. “The two providers who were here before are still here, Dr. Oliphant and Becky Traquair – but now we also have three more new providers.”

Drs. Alan Teel, M.D. and Patricia Phillips, D.O., nurse practitioner Susan Lord, and two health coordinators will be working alongside Oliphant and Traquair.

“It made sense for the organization and the doctor’s office to get together and expand, so they made it possible to bring in new providers.”

Patricia Seybold, president of the board of directors for Boothbay Region Health Care, Inc., said she was “pleased with our first day of our ‘soft launch.’”

Said Seybold, “We had several walk-in patients in addition to those who had been previously scheduled ... (We) still have lots of setup and training to do. And we’re looking for volunteers.”

The center will be open from 8:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. on Mondays, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday through Friday, and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.

The center will have its open house on Sunday, Jan. 21.