CHAMBLEE—The Mercy Care Chamblee clinic recently received approval from DeKalb County to open its doors to patients after an unexpected delay pushed back the ribbon cutting.

Mercy Care representative Diana Lewis said they are expecting to open the doors at the new clinic on Tuesday, April 18, two months later than initially planned. The clinic is at 5134 Peachtree Road, Chamblee.

Dignitaries are expected to be on hand for the Monday, May 1, dedication, which is invitation-only. An open house celebration for the public is scheduled for Saturday, May 20.

Mercy Care North, located on Buford Highway in the Northeast Plaza Shopping Center, has served the working poor of this community for more than a dozen years. Some 3,300 patients annually are treated there, yet the demand for primary care far exceeds the clinic’s capacity.

This Chamblee facility will be the expanded new home for Mercy Care North.

Nearly $14 million was raised during a campaign to construct the new clinic, a 45,000-square-foot facility. More than three times as many patients are expected to be treated there, with physicians seeing adults and children for primary care services, in addition to behavioral health, dental and eye care and health education.

The clinic has 24 examination rooms, eight counseling rooms, six dental operatories, two dental hygiene rooms and space for lab, vision and diagnostic services.

The delay stemmed from a need to upgrade the clinic’s sewer system. The Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean Water Act and DeKalb County’s 2010 agreement to improve the county’s sewer system required the county to restrict flow to the sewer system to avoid overwhelming its capacity.

Mercy Care is a nonprofit organization providing medical care to the poor, uninsured and those in need, founded upon the spirit of the Sisters of Mercy who established Atlanta’s first hospital, Saint Joseph’s Hospital. Mercy Care serves those in need through its nine clinics in metro Atlanta and provides care via a mobile medical unit at four other locations.