Vidant Multispecialty Clinic-Belhaven will remain open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, according to two spokeswomen for Vidant Medical Group of Beaufort County.

That assertion came during a presentation that representatives of Vidant Medical Group of Beaufort County made to the Down East Seniors during its meeting Wednesday. Penny Coltrain, Camille Jones, Jason Berry and Pam Shadle also discussed other issues regarding providing health care in Beaufort County.

In response to questions from Down East Seniors members about the clinic’s future, Coltrain, director of human resources at Vidant Beaufort Hospital, and Pam Shadle, director of marketing and public relations, addressed that issue. Several club members said they had received information that Vidant planned to reduce the clinics hours and some patients who needed transport to other medical facilities were being forced to stay in vehicles while that transportation, either by a ground vehicle or helicopters, was arranged.

Shadle said Vidant “would stay the course on what we said we would do” in regard to the clinic operating 24 hours a day and not “go away” from that commitment. She said the Belhaven clinic “is one of the finest clinics in all of Vidant Health.”

Coltrain said the president of Vidant Health, Dr. Michael Waldrum, recently told Vidant employees there is no movement to reduce the clinic’s hours. “We had Dr. Waldrum … he came down for an employee meeting — I want to say it was in November that he was down there — and that actually came up. It was kind of a little bit of rumbling through the employees, and they asked him,” she said. “He said, ‘I will tell you, I know of no conversation about them closing.’ He said, ‘That is not at all on our plan.’ Then, my boss’s boss, we kind of — when we get these questions — we get that back and ask, ‘Is there anything we need to know?’ … Just the other Sunday we saw 37 patients. It’s getting busier (there). We’ve seen no, at all, conversation. There’s no plan — it’ll be 24/7.”

“Absolutely not,” Coltrain replied to the allegation some patients were being forced to stay in vehicles and not allowed in the clinic as they waited to be transported. “Again, any and everybody are always welcome. Those doors never close. We were open during the hurricane, during the flood. … If you come in the front door, we will help anybody. Again, if it’s an emergent situation — and we do have people that come there and it’s emergent — they will get them fixed, take care of them, but they will get them packaged for transport,” Coltrain said.

When Vidant announced plans several years ago to close Vidant Pungo Hospital in Belhaven and open the clinic, some people expressed concern that losing the hospital’s emergency department and residents’ reliance on the clinic would diminish the level of health care provided to the Belhaven community and surrounding areas. Those opposed to the hospital’s closing campaigned to keep it open, but it was torn down earlier this year.