Dr. Lucas Campbell is Chief Transformation Officer at the nonprofit Washington Regional Medical System which operates a medical center in Fayetteville, six primary care clinics, more than twenty specialty clinics, and five urgent care clinics.
"Urgent cares exist for those patients who need immediate access that's not life threatening or limb threatening. And patients don't need to consult primary care physicians," he said. "They can come to an urgent care without a referral. That being said, or urgent cares will provide detailed notes back to a patient's primary care physician. Of course, if a patient does not have a primary care provider, our urgent cares are a great places to get access to care and then we can facilitate obtaining a primary care provider."
Those who frequent stand-alone urgent care clinics tend to lose contact with important primary care, according to the Patient Advocate Foundation. Washington Regional's first urgent care site opened in Fayetteville in 2014 in Appleby Landing Medical Center, relocating to Bradley Plaza south of the hospital in 2017. By 2022, it was consolidated with Regional's Crossover Road Urgent Care clinic. The hospital also operates urgent care clinics in Springdale, Rogers, Bentonville and Harrison.
"So our urgent care clinics offer convenient hours at all sites Monday through Friday 8am to 8 p.m., Saturdays 8 a.m.0 to 4 p.m., and even on Sundays 1 p.m. to 6 p.m." Campbell said. "Walk-ins are always welcome at our urgent care clinics. There's online scheduling available through our 'Hold My Spot' portal, and that can be accessed online, and then tele-health is also available, and it can be scheduled online as well."
Urgent care clinics serve both cash-only and insured patients presenting with conditions including fever, wounds, insect bites, and sprains, among many other complaints. Providers offer timely diagnostics, treatment and prescribed medication.
"Our urgent care clinics accept most commercial insurances including Medicare, Medicaid, and TRICARE," he said. "When patients present to our urgent care clinics, insured patients are asked for a copay or payment at the time care is delivered. If that can't happen then we will work with those patients on payment arrangements or if they prefer a different venue for care, we can assist with that. The point being we want to make sure all patients have access to care."
Research by the non-profit New York-based FAIR Health reveals that urgent care use has sharply risen in recent years. Millennials seek urgent care at much higher rates compared to baby boomers. Cost, convenience, and barriers to PCPs -- primary care physicians -- are widely cited by experts as reasons.
Urgent care clinics first appeared in the U.S. in the 1970s. Back then, they were euphemistically referred to as "Doc in a Box" due to being small clinics staffed by a physician. Since 2010, according to the American Journal of Clinical Medicine, the number of new urgent care sites has surged. But "docs" are no longer frontline providers in many clinics.
Dr. Campbell said Washington Regionals' five urgent care clinics are staffed by nurse practitioners or physician assistants.
"And those are supported by a collaborating and supervising physician who will also see patients," he said, "and review charts answering any questions as needed. We'll also have plenty of support staff such as a receptionist, lab tech, X-ray tech or or perhaps a medical assistant to facilitate care in the clinic."
Urgent care is far less costly and time-consuming compared to an emergency department or ED visit, Campbell said, which have spiked from around 54,000 in 2022 to 56,000 ED visits last year at Washington Regional.
"This is a really important point because we really want the right care delivered in the right place, in a timely manner and that's really what urgent care is all about. Urgent cares are typically anywhere from fifty to seventy-five percent less in cost compared to an ED visit with a like condition. Additionally, you know, just as we talked about earlier, wait times are significantly less in urgent cares compared to ED's because in ED's we have to triage and take care of the the most sick first."
Washington Regional has seen a thirteen percent increase in volume of urgent care patients, comparing first quarter this year to last, with more patients using online scheduling to secure appointments. In-clinic wait times average less than 15 minutes, far less than the national average of one hour.
Northwest Medical and Mercy Medical System also operate urgent care clinics in northwest Arkansas. Ozarks at Large queried Mercy, no response, which counts three urgent care sites.
Medical Associates of Northwest Arkansas, a large physician-owned and operated practice, has two urgent care clinics based in Fayetteville. According to MANA's website, both are staffed by physicians.
Campbell said Washington Regional patients receive no special treatment.
"Any patient who comes to one of our urgent care clinics will have equal access, no priority is given to patients already established within our system at all," he said. "However, once a patient is established within our urgent care that registration information and demographic information will convey and streamline future visits for sure."
Washington Regional offers a continuum of care, an integrated system that guides and tracks patients over time through a comprehensive array of health services and clinics spanning all levels of care. Population growth, however, is driving the need for urgent care services in northwest Arkansas, Campbell said.
"You know urgent cares will continue to be an important part of our healthcare ecosystem, providing a really key site for right care, right place, at the right time."
According to the Urgent Care Association, 14,721 urgent centers now operate across the U.S., up from 8600 in 2016, caring for more than 200 million patients annually. Today, nearly 90% of the U.S. population is within a 20-minute drive of urgent care.
