UK Healthcare

UK Healthcare. Polk-Dalton Clinic. Kentucky Clinic North was established by the University of Kentucky in 1996 to provide primary care in a medically underserved area of downtown Lexington The community-oriented clinic operated at a site on Third Street until this facility opened in 2000. Clinic founders sought to follow the path of two pioneering African-American physicians who answered the call to serve the medical needs of the downtown community, Dr. John Polk and Dr. J.R. Dalton., Dr. Polk. of Midway, son of the Rev. James K. Polk, established his medical practice at 166 DeWeese Street after graduating from Howard University Medical School in 1918. In 1920. he founded Polk's Infirmary at 148 DeWeese Street. He operated the Infirmary until his death in 1936., Dr. Dalton. of Georgetown, reopened Polk's clinic in 1940 and directed its operations until his death in 1953. More than just a medical facility, Polk's Infirmary served as the center for Lexington's African-American community. The historic structure became the headquarters of the Lexington-Fayette County Urban League in 1999., UK HealthCare is proud to continue the tradition of health care excellence in downtown Lexington. while remembering the physicians who helped blaze that trail. It is in their honor that Kentucky Clinic North is re-named the Polk -Dalton Clinic.