As Community Health Centers evaluate whether to add additional sites/locations to their scope, there are many things to look at and evaluate.  Below are five core elements to consider:

1. Where will the services be provided?
2. What services will be provided?
3. Who will provide the services?
4. What geographic area will the project serve?
5. Who will the project serve?

These five core elements should be the backbone of evaluating services to be added, and then finally deciding whether an additional site/location should be added to scope.  Before moving forward and adding an additional site/location to scope, all of the following conditions must be met:

• Health center encounters are generated by documenting in the patients’ records face-to-face contacts between patients and providers.
• Providers exercise independent judgment in the provision of services to the patient.
• Services are provided directly by, or on behalf of the grantee, whose governing board retains control and authority over the provision of the services at the location; and
• Services are provided on a regularly scheduled basis (e.g., daily, weekly, first Thursday of every month).  Remember, there is no minimum number of hours per week that services must be available at an individual site.

Finally, it is important to ensure that all plans are discussed with and approved by the board of directors as it is part of their governance duties.  

For more information on adding sites/locations to scope (also known as Form 5B), please review https://bphc.hrsa.gov/programrequirements/scope.html and https://bphc.hrsa.gov/sites/default/files/bphc/programrequirements/pdf/pin2008-01.pdf .