Strathmore’s first walk-in clinic now open

Times Reporter

 

The Strathmore hospital first opened its doors in 1985. Since that time the town has quadrupled in population, and the medical staff in the community have struggled to keep up with the demands. 

The need for more physicians in Strathmore is evident, as is the need for an after-hours walk-in clinic to help ease some of the congestion the hospital’s emergency ward deals with.  

“We’re getting pressures from Calgary, from Chestermere, Langdon and emergency is really the only after-hours care clinic that is provided. Emergency visits are tremendously expensive; they’ll cost easily 10 times what it would cost in an office setting. Patients are getting frustrated, and staff are getting frustrated and I think it’s just time for an after-hours clinic,” said Strathmore physician Dr. J. Fanning.

On the evening of Oct. 15 the Valley Medical Clinic, which Fanning practices out of, was open for the first time as an after-hours walk-in clinic. Fanning said he really hopes to see some of the other clinics in town participate in the program and open their own after hours clinics, which are sponsored by the Primary Care Network (PCN). 

Fanning explained that the PCN is a collaboration where physicians can direct funding to where they think the need is, and an evening walk in clinic is one of the highest needs in Strathmore.

Another need for Strathmore is finding three to four full-service physicians. 

“It would be absolutely amazing what would happen with services here if we could recruit just three full-service physicians, things would change quite a bit because it really frees us up to do more things,” said Fanning.

“We’re looking for physicians that want to work in acute care, in emergency and in an office setting. A lot of visits to emergencies are truly not emergencies but people go there because they have no other option. Costs are high, it clogs the systems and it doesn’t create a great atmosphere.

“We’re also building on to our clinic here. We’re hoping to attract new physicians to town. If we could get three or four new physicians in town who are truly full-service physicians, then we will be able to offer even expanded services for the town, filling our need for acute care and filling our need for community-based physicians.”

The walk-in clinic is new to the town. Fanning said the hope is to attract the patients who are sitting in emergency and who realize they shouldn’t be there. Fanning said they are looking for the smaller medical issues that can easily be taken care of at the clinic. For example if it is a small laceration, then people are encouraged to go to the clinic instead of emergency, but if it’s a big thing, a possible heart attack then it is likely not appropriate for the walk in clinic.

“If there is something we can’t handle here we of course would refer to the emergency and all of us work in emergency so we work in both camps. Likely in the hospital if things are quite busy they’ll point out to the patient that ‘look you’re going to have a long wait here, there’s an evening clinic if you want to go,’” said Fanning. 

“We really promote that anyone who walks in follows up with a family doctor. We’re a walk-in clinic and give sort of urgent care for that time but we really stress that we want them to follow up with their family doctors.”

Work has begun on the expansion of the clinic. It will be in the area between Strathmore’s Florist and the Valley Medical Clinic, and will be fill in the space which had previously been the parking lot. Fanning hopes other clinics will jump on board and it could be coordinated to maybe see each clinic take a day a week so that an evening walk-in clinic is available every evening to those who need it. 

The town has been keen on the issue and there are recruiting ideas that will probably be launched in the next month or so. Currently the town has approximately a dozen physicians. Fanning has been here since 1985 and said Strathmore is a great medical community, and a great place to raise children. He thinks it is the perfect place for a full service physician to call home. 

The walk-in clinic will be open from 5 p.m. until 9 p.m. every Monday. Based on the demand, and the number of patients each Monday evening the doors to the clinic may close at 8 p.m. Patients already in the clinic will still be helped even if it runs past 9 p.m. However, if the demand is low then the doors will remain open until 9 p.m.

The clinic is open to all unscheduled patients and will operate on a first come, first serve basis. The clinic is located at 231 2nd Ave.