ChildServe expands Coralville location, enhancing comprehensive pediatric care in Iowa

One of Iowa's only full-service pediatric clinics now has a little extra space to operate.

Specialty pediatric healthcare provider ChildServe celebrated the opening of its new 13,000-square-foot facility on May 16 in Coralville.

ChildServe has been helping Iowa families for more than 95 years. Its Coralville facility opened in 2016. ChildServe also has locations in Ames and Johnston, serving more than 5,800 children.

ChildServe focuses on complex medical care, like pediatric rehabilitation, behavioral health, autism, and community-based services.

The organization recently operated out of two Coralville buildings to accommodate its growing psychology and mental health services. The new building allows Childserve to offer all its services under one roof, better-enhancing collaboration.

ChildServe moved to its current address at 2350 Oakdale Boulevard in 2017.

"Our mission is to partner with families to talk to special health care needs," said ChildServe CEO Terry Wahlig. "Our regional growth strategy is really about enhancing our main locations in Johnston, Ames, and Iowa City and then, from there, going into smaller communities with satellite locations to try to extend our reach to serve more children."

More room for growth and collaboration

The new Coralville facility means clients will have better access to outpatient services, including speech, occupational, and physical therapy, as well as autism and applied behavior analysis (ABA) services. The project also included a sensory playground for its ABA program, which includes Fun Factory structures like rock climbing walls, a zipline, monkey bars, swings, and slides.

"There's a ton of collaboration between our therapists. There aren't any silos. If a kiddo has multiple services, those therapists or clinicians talk and say, 'What's happening in your area? How can I reinforce that in mind,'" said Marie Hassel, ChildServe Regional Director. "[Having half of the team] being off-site made it a little bit challenging for families if they had two appointments here; they'd have to get in the car and then go over there."

Construction began on May 3, 2023.

Bringing children together

Fun is rooted in ChildServe's mission, which promotes success in outcomes.

"They're super excited to be here because everything is fun, and we incorporate fun into every treatment," Hassel said. "We want children and families to feel comfortable here.

Second, it already puts them in a mindset of fun. It does lend to one of our values of having treatments utilized by parents and children, and it improves outcomes, too."

Wahlig believes the Coralville expansion allows Childserve to accomplish its mission to "do more, do it better and do it together."

"Doing better is about organizational health, being a well-run, efficient, innovative organization, and doing it together is about those partnerships," Wahlig said. "We take our inspiration from kids. Kids are so excited to try new things and to be awesome."

Jessica Rish is an entertainment, dining and business reporter for the Iowa City Press-Citizen. She can be reached atJRish@press-citizen.com or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @rishjessica_