The Kalispell Planning Board and Zoning Commission on Tuesday approved a conditional-use permit for a 24-hour “assist” facility near Kalispell Regional Medical Center.

Dr. Marise Johnson is the landlord of the building, which will be used for people who no longer need to be in a hospital but might not be ready to return home.

“It’s for anyone that has social barriers to getting care,” Johnson said. “They might not have applied for veterans benefits or they live in Essex and need a daily IV for an infection but have no way of getting to that.”

The facility will be run by Kalispell Regional Healthcare’s Assist program, which helps patients with social barriers fill out different applications and better understand their own health care. Several Assist coordinators actually reach out to patients at their homes to check up on their prescriptions or welfare.

Johnson said that occasionally, people with social barriers return home from the hospital and don’t or can’t follow through with their prescriptions or post-hospital practices that would help keep them from being readmitted to Kalispell Regional.

“This becomes more important as the health-care system changes,” Johnson said. “It’s in all our best interests to make it work for everyone. This will be a huge economic benefit to those who fall through the cracks on a daily basis.”

The building at 1280 Burns Way will be able to house 10 people at any given time. Johnson said it hasn’t been determined whether the hospital will charge patients for time spent at the facility.

The building is currently used for an outpatient billing department. Once a building permit is approved to renovate the building into the assist facility, the billing staff will move to another hospital space, Johnson said.

The main floor will be used for office space and records, while the lower level will hold 10 rooms for patient use.  

“I was really delighted to see this project and some use of this building,” Planning Board member Karlene Osorio-Khor said. “It’s so needed.”

Johnson said she expects renovations to begin in about a month.

Reporter Seaborn Larson may be reached at 758-4441 or by email at slarson@dailyinterlake.com.