Milwaukee – A new online urgent care clinic from Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin health network offers quick access to health care services no matter where you are. Using a computer, mobile device or telephone, people can see and speak to a board-certified family medicine provider with the Froedtert & MCW Virtual Clinic anywhere, anytime, day or night.
“This is about delivering the right care in the right place at the right time,” said Michael Anderes, vice president, service lines and digital health for the Froedtert & MCW health network. “If you’re sick, the last thing you want to do is make an appointment, drive to a clinic or sit in a waiting room. With this service, a busy mom can talk to a health care professional about her flu symptoms from anywhere at any time.”
Anderes added, “The Virtual Clinic also responds to growing consumer demand for digital alternatives to traditional services, and is more cost-effective than a bricks-and-mortar clinic.”
A Virtual Clinic visit costs $49. Treatable conditions include most minor illnesses, ranging from allergies, cuts and bladder infections to shingles, rash, eye issues, sinus infections, sprains and many more. A visit may involve diagnosis, treatment recommendations and prescriptions. If the provider determines that the condition would be better treated at a nearby medical facility, the individual will be directed appropriately. The Virtual Clinic service is available to anyone in Wisconsin, although regulatory restrictions currently exclude individuals covered under a federal insurance program, such as Medicare, Medicare Advantage, Medicaid, BadgerCare or Tricare.
An added benefit of the Virtual Clinic is that if a person needs more advanced care, the full resources of the region’s only academic-community health network are available. Those resources could range from connecting someone to a primary care provider for ongoing care to connecting a person to a specialist, Anderes said.
To launch the service, Froedtert & MCW health network partnered with Seattle-based Carena Health Care, which specializes in virtual urgent care. As the program grows, the medical provider staff will transition to Froedtert & MCW health network providers.
