WHAT a Monday morning this was shaping up to be. Carrie Clemens' head pounded, breathing through her stuffy nose was difficult and her symptoms were worse despite a weekend of bed rest. But work beckoned -- and she had no time to visit the doctor.
And so, before checking in at her job, Clemens stopped by a small walk-in clinic at a Costa Mesa Rite Aid. There, she received a sinusitis diagnosis from a nurse practitioner, filled a prescription for an antibiotic to treat it and was out in 15 minutes.
"I can pop in here and get on with my day," says Clemens, 32, of Huntington Beach. "And I won't have to wait for hours in my doctor's office with a bunch of other sick people."
Walk-in clinics: An article in Monday's Health section about walk-in clinics described Carrie Clemens' visit to Lindora Health Clinic, reporting in a positive way her experience as a patient at the clinic. Clemens is also an employee of Lindora Inc. but did not acknowledge this fact when asked about her place of employment. The Times learned of it after publication of the article.
Walk-in clinics: A Jan. 22 article about walk-in clinics described Carrie Clemens' visit to Lindora Health Clinic, reporting in a positive way her experience as a patient at the clinic. Clemens is also an employee of Lindora Inc. but did not acknowledge this fact when asked about her place of employment. The Times learned of it after publication of the article.
As the nation's healthcare system struggles to provide affordable care to all who need it, store-based health clinics are springing up around the country. By using mostly nurse practitioners instead of doctors, and operating in a corner of an existing business, the clinics are able to provide some basic health services for around $40 to $70 per visit -- in less time than it takes to eat lunch. Most are even open evenings and weekends, when the lights are out in private doctors' offices.
Some doctors and health experts worry that the clinics may not always provide quality medical care -- and that they could prevent a patient from forming a relationship with a primary-care doctor. But clinic operators say their services are an innovation whose time has come. The emphasis on convenience and low cost fills an unmet need in today's healthcare system, they say.
"Consumers are increasingly finding that access to their primary-care doctor is problematic," says Mary Kate Scott, a Los Angeles-based healthcare consultant who wrote a report on the trend last year for the California HealthCare Foundation. "Either you don't have a primary-care doctor or it takes a very long time to get an appointment."
With deductibles and co-pays ever increasing for doctors' visits, many consumers find the flat fees charged by retail clinics a bargain, says Scott. When not covered by insurance, the cost for a doctor's visit can cost $70 and up. Even with insurance, co-pays of $35 are commonplace. Add that to additional premiums charged if the yearly deductible hasn't been met and walk-in clinics' fees become comparable.
For uninsured Americans or those without primary-care physicians, such clinics can help avoid crowded hospital emergency rooms and the resulting long waits.
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