In November 1970, the day after Thanksgiving, Central Virginia Community Health Center opened, operating out of three trailers, one each in Buckingham, Fluvanna and Cumberland Counties. Since then, CVHS has steadily grown to include a total of fourteen sites serving fifteen counties and three cities. In addition to the original counties, CVHS also serves Charlotte, Brunswick, Caroline, Prince Edward, Prince George, Southern Albemarle, Charles City, King William, King and Queen, Louisa, Richmond, and Westmoreland. The cities it serves include Fredericksburg, Petersburg, and Hopewell. While each site grew out of a unique community need, all of them were created in response to the need for accessible, affordable health care. Services are not restricted to the residents of these specific service areas, and CVHS providers’ welcome patients from any locality.
The region covered by CVHS extends from Brunswick County in south central Virginia to the northeast, to an area known as the Northern Neck, a peninsula between the Potomac and Rappahannock Rivers. The southern part of Virginia had suffered economically with the decline of the tobacco industry, and the prevailing poverty rates are indicative of the long-term impact that decline has had on this region’s residents.
In addition to being medically underserved, many of the sites are also in Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSA). CVHS has had a number of providers who have benefited from the National Health Service Corp’s loan repayment program. Like other community health centers, CVHS is located in medically underserved areas. The nature of the underserved may vary (poverty, geographic isolation, too few primary care providers), but CVHS is committed to helping residents of its service area get the health care they need, where they need it and in a way that ensures its patients are treated with dignity and respect, regardless of their life circumstances.
Charlotte Courthouse is a town in the county seat of Charlotte County. It has a total area of 4.0 square miles and all of it is land. The Courthouse building was also used in the filming of the movie "Somersby" in the summer of 1992 with actors Richard Gere, Jodie Foster, and James Earl Jones.
Charlotte Court House has three different schools inside the town limits. Randolph-Henry High School for grades 9-12, Central Middle School for grades 6-8, and the Early Learning Center for pre-kindergarten.