Award-winning Texas A&M Health clinic in Navasota expands services

Texas A&M Health is expanding its award-winning Family Care clinic in Navasota, Texas, to provide more health care options for families in the area. A community open house was held Saturday, Jan. 28, to celebrate the opening of the expanded clinic, now called the Texas A&M Health Hub, at 1905 Dove Crossing Lane, suite C.

As part of the expansion, the family care clinic moved to a larger suite just around the corner in the same building it’s been housed in since 2016. The additional space has allowed Texas A&M Health to bring in more care providers and services to provide a one-stop medical home for residents of Navasota and the surrounding area.

The new Health Hub offers primary care for the whole family, including pediatric, geriatric and obstetric care, and on-site lab services. Patients can also schedule same-day appointments. This is the second Health Hub Texas A&M Health has opened in the area. The first opened in Bryan in 2021.

“The expansion of this clinic will allow us to meet the health care needs of our neighbors locally but also in the surrounding counties,” said Navasota native and Texas A&M University School of Medicine graduate, Katie Blalock, MD, who cares for patients at the clinic. “I consider myself incredibly blessed to be able to serve in my hometown and am humbled by the trust that our patients place in us each day. This community has supported me my entire life and with the help of our team at Texas A&M Health we strive to improve the health of our patients throughout their lives.”

The new Health Hub is part of Texas A&M Health’s efforts to address the unique challenges rural communities face when it comes to accessing medical care. Transportation issues, distance to hospitals and clinics, and a lack of local providers can make it difficult for rural Texans to receive the care they need. Having access to medical care nearby is crucial for maintaining the health and well-being of the community.

One of the biggest advantages of having medical care nearby is the ability to keep chronic diseases under control. Conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, and high blood pressure require ongoing management and monitoring, which can be difficult to do when you have to travel long distances to see a doctor. By having local care providers, individuals are able to receive regular check-ups, medications and treatments that help keep these conditions in check. Doing so can prevent severe outcomes, save lives and ensure that families are able to maintain their livelihoods.

Medical services at the Health Hub in Navasota are provided collaboratively by faculty at the Texas A&M School of Medicine and School of Nursing, both components of Texas A&M Health. Students from these schools have the opportunity to rotate through the Health Hub, allowing them to gain hands-on experience caring for diverse patients in a rural, outpatient setting. The goal is that they will return to practice in underserved communities like Navasota or similar rural areas in Texas.

“Texans who live in communities like Navasota deserve access to expert care close to home,” said Cynthia Weston, DNP, RN, FNP-BC, associate dean for clinical and outreach affairs at the School of Nursing. “The School of Nursing remains committed to serving rural areas, and our nurse-led same-day clinic improves access to services that are essential to a healthy community. It also creates important opportunities for all Texas A&M Health students to collaborate with other health care disciplines while realizing the impact they can have in rural Texas.”

Texas A&M Health’s clinic in Navasota is already well-known in the area for providing excellent, patient-centered care, and has won Best of Grimes County Best Medical Clinic every year since 2018. Blalock—who has been named Best Family Physician by the Best of Grimes County for seven years running—has served patients at the clinic for several years and continues to provide exceptional care in the new location. Joining Blalock at the Navasota Health Hub is Charlotte Toney, ARNP, a certified nurse practitioner who brings expertise in primary and urgent care.

“The Navasota Health Hub offers robust primary care, but it accomplishes much more,” said Gabriel Neal, MD, MA, FAAFP, clinical associate professor and acting department head of the Department of Primary Care and Rural Medicine at the School of Medicine. “The expansion of the clinic into a Health Hub is advancing the mission of the Texas A&M School of Medicine and School of Nursing through increased access to high-quality, interprofessional medical care, interprofessional education, and increased clinical research—all in a rural Texas community.”