San Diego's First Urgent Care Center Franchise Opens

San Diego's First Urgent Care Center Franchise Opens

 

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It’s no secret that for over a decade now, health care costs (not to mention gas prices, car insurance rates, and university fees) in the U.S. have been sky-rocketing while worker’s earnings have been itching to catch up. Not only are expenses at a staggering high, but access to urgent and emergency care doesn’t nearly equate with how costly they are. The urgent care process is rather unpleasant, with the waiting in what seems to be an interminable line of patients, some of whom not nearly in as much pain as you are.

There is now a more efficient system for those seeking immediate, yet not life-threatening medical attention. San Diego has now become home to Doctors Express, the nation’s first urgent care franchise that recently celebrated its grand opening in Oceanside on February 26.

An unlikely duo, local business woman Kari Knowles and board-certified family care physician Alireza Etamadi are teaming up and combining their business and medical expertise to actualize a concept seldom attempted and frankly, even heard of by most. Knowles has overtaken the business aspect and left her partner-in-crime, Dr. Etamadi to manage his highly skilled team of physicians to focus on his patients. Both professionals hope to refurbish the pre-existing expectations patients have when they walk through hospital doors -- patients usually expect uncaring medical personnel, lengthy wait times, and overpriced medicinal care.

Here are a few facts to illustrate just how dire the healthcare crisis is and how drastically it burdens the ill: Patients now spend on average a total of four hours and seven minutes in the ER. The average wait time at a Doctors Express is promised to be 15-20 minutes at the most. Approximately 17 percent of all visits to hospital emergency departments across the United States could be treated at retail medical clinics or urgent care centers, theoretically saving $4.4 billion each year in health care costs. And, the icing on the cake- on average, an ambulance is turned away every single minute because emergency rooms are far too overcrowded to admit new patients, regardless of how severe their wounds or symptoms are.

However, Doctors Express hopes to serve as a saving grace through their extensive range of services offered then and there. Experienced physicians will diagnose and treat disorders, distribute medication, provide x-rays and offer fast test results for conditions like mono or strep throat.

There is a pressing need for this kind of health center specifically catered to patients of any background in need of prompt, yet not so pricey, treatment.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Hispanics currently make up 31 percent of the overall population in San Diego County alone. Knowles and Etamadi have employed three Spanish-speaking medical assistants on staff to attend to the needs of the rapidly growing Hispanic population in San Diego County.

So, what is to come for this revolutionary movement in the health care system? Currently, there are 28 Doctors Express centers successfully operating across the country. A total of 81 franchises have been awarded in 23 states and 40 will be operating by the end of the first quarter of this year. The long term goal is to have 1,000 Doctors Express centers throughout the nation in the hopes that quality and consistent healthcare treatments are available around every corner. With the triumphs of Doctors Express already endured nationwide, one can only predict that this brand new center in Oceanside will undergo as much success as its predecessors. 

Posted by Nikkei 225 at 09:17
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