Parents in Pittsburgh now have another option when a child spikes a fever or twists an ankle after the pediatrician's office has closed for the night. UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh opened a new Express Care location at its main hospital, giving families a same-day alternative to the emergency room for minor illnesses and injuries during evenings and weekends.
The clinic sits on the hospital's first floor near the main lobby in Lawrenceville and includes nine exam rooms, according to repertoiremag.com. The outlet reports the new space is designed to evaluate and treat children and teens for conditions that do not require the level of care available in the hospital's Emergency Department.
As TribLIVE reports, the clinic serves children whose regular pediatricians are unavailable and whose conditions don't warrant a trip to the ER. It's meant as an alternative to waiting until morning or heading to the emergency room when a child gets sick or hurt after a pediatrician's office has already closed for the day.
What the Clinic Treats and When It's Open
The list of conditions covered is long: colds, fever and flu, ear and throat infections, asthma and wheezing, nausea and vomiting, rashes, minor cuts and scrapes, and simple fractures, sprains and strains, per the same report. UPMC's own Express Care page adds bronchitis, bronchiolitis, pneumonia and other viral illnesses to that list, along with foreign-body removal and evaluation for diarrhea and dehydration, according to chp.edu. The site also notes that pregnancy testing and limited sexually transmitted infection testing are among the services offered.
Hours at the new location run Monday through Friday from 1 to 9 p.m., and Saturdays and Sundays from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., chp.edu states. The hospital describes that schedule as expanded hours, and its website separately notes that pediatric video visits are available 24/7, 365 days a year, for families who need a faster option still.
Keeping the Pediatrician in the Loop
Express Care staff say they will coordinate with a child's regular doctor rather than leave families to sort out next steps on their own. We will provide a record of your visit to your pediatrician, and will refer you back to them should your child need follow up care, chp.edu states. That follow-up coordination mirrors how UPMC has described its Express Care network in the past.
An earlier UPMC announcement described a Monroeville Express Care center as the system's third such facility, set to open on Tuesday, July 19, 2011. That location was slated to run from 5 to 9 p.m. on weekdays and noon to 8 p.m. on weekends, according to chp.edu, with no appointments necessary and free on-site parking. The Monroeville announcement also said X-ray services and a variety of other tests would be offered there, and that patients needing a higher level of care would be transported to the Emergency Department at the hospital's main Lawrenceville campus or referred to pediatric specialists.
