From audiology to mental health, and everything in-between, for almost three months now a new veterans affair clinic in Clearwater has been a place for service members to find easy access to care. 

For Scott Carpenter, it’s been a big help. 

These days he works as a financial advisor.

“I enjoy sitting and chatting with people because my goal and what drives me every day is to really help others improve their outlook,” he said.

He spends a lot of time working at home with his dog by his side, but that wasn’t always the case.

“I was in the Army, I served almost 13 years. I separated in January 2020, just before the pandemic,” Carpenter said, who worked as a cargo specialist in the Army. “Primarily a Reservist, but I volunteered for a deployment in 2016."

It’s been a little while since he’s looked at his uniform and sorted through his military memories, but it’s a part of his life that he holds close.

“I was a physical therapist for almost 20 years, graduated with my Master's degree and shortly after 9/11, I decided to enlist. I chose to enlist as opposed to go commission because I wanted to get my hands dirty so to speak,” he said.

He wanted to do something completely different and all along a constant theme of his life has been to help.

“I love to go to bed every night knowing that hopefully I was able to touch somebody’s life in some way, shape, or form for the positive for the good. Really that’s what gets me out of bed in the morning and gets me going,” he said.

He’s been the one to help, until recently he needed help himself.

“I had open heart surgery at no cost at James Haley, and after a week in the surgical intensive care unit, it was incredible the care I received,” Carpenter said.

Now several times a month he goes to the new North Pinellas Community Based Outpatient Clinic for his follow-up care.

It’s close to home and it’s easy for him to get in and out.

“The new facility is much much bigger, you almost have to drop breadcrumbs when you’re going back through the halls because it’s like a maze. But it’s very brightly lit, it’s very open. It’s clean,” said Carpenter.

Interim Assistant Director Justina Wells says they’re trying to get the word out to more veterans in the area.

“We opened on June 13th at this new location this year. Before we were in Palm Harbor, but then all of the services we’re transitioned from there to here,” she said.

The new facility is 24,000 square feet; which is about three times bigger than the old clinic.

Patients can receive a wide variety of care.

“We have audiology booths in there as well as an area where they’re able to fit some hearing aids,” Wells said.

Most of the time when a patient comes, they stay in one room and a care team come in to see them so everyone stays on the same page.

“We have specialized individuals here that provide women health services to our women veterans. This is one of our growing populations so we’re trying to do all that we can to bring them into the folds of our health system,” said Wells.

In the future, the clinic is expected to offer Physical Therapy.

“They’re very well prepared, they’re on top of staying ahead of things. They’ll order tests for possible conditions. It’s interesting to see how medical care can be given when really cost is seemingly not as much of an issue as it is with managed care,” said Carpenter.

Click here for more information on the clinic including address and hours.