MILFORD – Ordinarily, Karen Derie would take time from work to see a doctor when she was not feeling well.

But a few weeks ago, after she developed an earache, all she had to do was walk from her workplace at Hitchiner Manufacturing to the company’s new on-site clinic. Within 30 minutes she was treated, given a prescription and was back at work.

There was no drive to the doctor and no co-pay.

Not long after that, her daughter was not feeling well, and she too was treated at the clinic for no charge.

Derie told her story during the ribbon-cutting ceremony last week that officially opened Hitchiner’s no-cost clinic, a collaboration between the manufacturing company and Southern New Hampshire Medical Center.

A “true milestone in the company’s 65-year history,” Hitchiner President Michael Hanrahan told the gathering outside the four-room clinic, and a way for the company to meet its obligation to the “health and welfare of employees.”

Intended for employees, their spouses and dependents, the clinic is also the company’s response to the high cost of health care and part of ongoing efforts to lower costs and a projected 40 percent excise tax under the new federal health care reform law.

Staffed with a nurse practitioner, the clinic offers immunizations, physicals and acute care when employees or their families are sick or injured. Staff also can administer medication, deal with occupational health issues and help manage chronic illnesses, such as diabetes and high blood pressure.

Hitchiner, which makes casting for industry, does not have the healthiest workforce, Hanrahan said, and half of all their insurance claims are related to chronic diseases, including heart disease, obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes and depression.

“We want to see a 50 percent reduction in high blood pressure and high cholesterol,” Hanrahan said.

Currently, only 23 percent of employees have an annual physical, he said, and the goal is to bring that to 50 percent.

During the open house, Roger Prevost took the opportunity to get a flu shot.

The sales engineer called the clinic “a wonderful opportunity for Hitchiner employees to gain control of their medical situation. And the convenience is certainly a plus.”

The Health and Resource Center is the clinic’s formal name, and it is the result of a collaboration between Hitchiner and Southern New Hampshire Health System, which is made up of Southern New Hampshire Medical Center and Foundation Medical Partners.

Kathy Cleveland can be reached at 673-3100, ext. 21, or kcleveland@cabinet.com.