By Harris, Linda
Morgantown-based MedExpress has opened an urgent care clinic in Wheeling, its third in West Virginia.
In addition to locations in Morgantown, where the company is headquartered, and Parkersburg, MedExpress also operates eight clinics in western Pennsylvania and is partnering with the former Acute Injury & Illness Center and ImmediaCare Urgent Care in Colorado to provide similar service at five locations in and around Denver.
Another clinic is slated to open next month in Beckley.
Erich Lipphardt, vice president of business development, said the MedExpress philosophy is to provide “great care, fast.” Open daily, each clinic operates on extended hours – from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. – and no appointments are needed.
“Really, more than anything, it started with a few physicians wanting to put their vision for medicine into play,” he said. “Our business model is focused solely on convenience for patients and employs a customer service model to treat people the right way.”
The idea, he said, is to ensure people suffering from non-life threatening injuries or illnesses get the care they need quickly and efficiently, without sacrificing quality.
“We’ve created a good flow model to get people in and out, and we’ve been diligent in treating patients the way they want to be treated.”
The Wheeling clinic opened June 25 at 620 National Road. Serving as its district medical director is Dr. David Burkland, who recently received the Excellence in Emergency Medicine Award from the West Virginia chapter of the American College of Emergency Physicians. He also has received statewide recognition as an expert in quality assurance and customer service.
“We are not an emergency room, we are an urgent care provider,” Lipphardt said, adding they handle unscheduled – but not life- or limb-threatening –urgent needs ranging from illnesses like colds, the flu, viruses, bronchitis/pneumonia or rashes, to fractures, sprains, strains and dislocations, lacerations and work-related injuries.
Clinics also handle worker’s compensation cases, offer sports physicals and provide other workplace services. X-rays, lab services, EKGs and IV fluids also can be administered on site.
Copyright State Journal Corporation Jul 18, 2008
(c) 2008 State Journal, The. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.
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