so to speak, pro-
vides help to
patients right away,
with no need for
waiting or going
elsewhere.
Population in
need
When the urgent
care clinic opened in
2008, it was expect-
ing to handle mainly
pediatric and sports
injury cases. But the patient population has been all over the map as
far as age is concerned. It sees plenty of middle-aged weekend war-
riors, too, as well as both osteoporotic and active seniors.
Ankle and wrist fractures are probably the No. 1 concern, but it's
open to any musculoskeletal issue, from sprains, strains and minor
dislocations to torn ligaments and tendons.
For patients, the advantage of going to an ASC instead of the ER for
fracture care is clear. A same-day, even walk-in, appointment with
specialists offers immediate access, surely a convenience when
they're injured. Time is an advantage for physicians, too, in being able
to get patients into the OR right away, if necessary.
The urgent care clinic also offers a level of patient safety that the
ER and general urgent care facilities don't, namely that it doesn't
expose patients in the waiting room to others who are coughing,
sneezing or suffering from the flu, and patients aren't following an
infected patient into treatment areas. Because it's only treating mus-
6 0 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E • F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 6
• FOLLOWING UP Bundled care plans include consultations, imaging, treatment and rehab.
Patients appreciate that the care is billed as a
specialty office visit, not as a hospital ER trip, so their
co-pays are less, and they're spared the extra fees and
extended costs of walk-in urgent care clinics.
The
San
Antonio
Orthopedic
Group
