Faith-based clinics discuss their role

WISH Medical’s brightly-lit waiting room is filled with plush sofas and armchairs. A single-use coffee maker is tucked into the corner, as well as a collection of toys for patients with children. For the most part, it looks just like any other doctor’s office waiting room.

For years, WISH has provided free pregnancy-related services, such as pregnancy testing and ultrasound, as well as other low-cost services such as testing for sexually transmitted infections, Pap smears and sexual health exams.

But unlike other clinics in the area that offer many of the same services at a free or reduced cost — among them Planned Parenthood, the Community Health Association of Spokane and some student health clinics — WISH, and other clinics like it (commonly referred to as “crisis pregnancy centers,” though they don’t use the term themselves), are religiously affiliated.

Because of that distinction, WISH also does not provide abortion care or referrals for abortion. Amy McNelly, the CEO of WISH’s parent organization, Palouse Care Network, said the clinic tries to be clear about what they offer.

“We are quick to clarify that with people, and don’t ever want to misrepresent ourselves and who we are,” she said. “We do try to offer people accurate information.”

Reliance Center, another faith-based clinic in Lewiston, offers free pregnancy tests, yeast and urinary tract infection testing, and STI screenings for gonorrhea, chlamydia and trichomoniasis.

In the weeks following news that most abortions in Idaho will likely be illegal by this summer, Heather Lawless, the founder and CEO of Reliance, said she’s noticed more women calling about abortion information.

“Women who are contacting us saying that, you know, ... they’re looking for an abortion, they want to have an ultrasound or they’re thinking about abortion, so they want to talk to us about their options,” she said. “We are seeing a huge increase in women who are ... looking for abortion, seeking abortion, who come to us to ask questions and to get information.”

At WISH, McNelly said she wasn’t aware of any change yet, and didn’t know if they’d see one because of their proximity to Washington — patients who want an abortion don’t have to drive far.

Like WISH, Lawless said Reliance Center never claims to offer abortions, and tells patients who call ahead that they don’t provide referrals. Her goal, Lawless said, is to make it so fewer people feel they need an abortion, instead of making women feel forced into a decision.

What the clinic does offer, though, is information about abortions. And some of that information has been highly contested.

“Most women regret their decision to have an abortion,” Lawless said. “Most women experience depression, anxiety, things like that, that follow the abortion. And studies have shown that 50% of women that have an abortion believe that they took a human life.”

Lawless’s source for that 50% figure was the 2016 documentary “Hush,” which aligns itself as neither pro or anti abortion, but simply a source of information.

That film was later criticized by one of the doctors it interviewed. Other research has also contradicted the idea that most women regret their decision for abortion.

Still, Lawless said most women who want an abortion think they don’t have any other option when there are support systems that will help them.

Both Reliance and WISH provide services such as parenting and pregnancy classes, diapers and formula.

Reliance plans to add postnatal care, Lawless said, and WISH has free gently-used clothing for children, as well as new clothes, cribs and other things parents might need that they can “buy” with points they earn by taking classes through Palouse Care Network.

“(Patients) think they have to (have an abortion) because they’re in an abusive relationship, they have to because their parents will kill them if they find out,” Lawless said. “Because they’re addicted to drugs, or because they’re homeless ... We just pull (that focus back), so that they can see around them and see that they could have support.”

Both Lawless and McNelly pointed to their organizations’ “holistic” approach to care, with a focus on spiritual and emotional health in addition to physical wellness. WISH has one licensed therapist, who works with children and adults on a sliding payment scale.

WISH also has what they call “client advocates,” who meet with patients before any medical appointment, and may direct them to other services within the organization that include sexual assault recovery, pornography recovery and life coaching.

At Reliance, patients have access to “peer counselors.” Lawless, who is certified by the American Association of Christian Counselors, offers life coaching, marriage and relationship coaching and mental health trauma coaching.

Though the clinics do not promote abortions, McNelly said they make an effort not to pressure patients into a decision.

“We really believe that if anybody makes a decision because they feel like they were pressured into it, they’re not going to feel good about the decision,” she said.

Lawless said she knows many women will feel angry if Roe v. Wade is overturned, and clinics like hers will have to work to prove themselves.

“Women are going to believe that we took away their right to choose, believe that we don’t want the best for them,” she said. “We’re going to have to work even harder to show them that we’re here for them.”

Sun may be contacted at rsun@lmtribune.com or on Twitter at @Rachel_M_Sun. This report is made possible by the Lewis-Clark Valley Healthcare Foundation in partnership with Northwest Public Broadcasting, the Lewiston Tribune and the Moscow-Pullman Daily News.