PRESQUE ISLE, Maine — Officials at Northern Light A.R. Gould Hospital have announced that a new Walk-In Care service will open in Caribou on Monday, Feb. 1.
The service, located at the Northern Light Health Center in Caribou at 118 Bennett Dr., will offer non-emergency care to patients daily from noon to 8 p.m. with no appointment needed.
“We have been offering Walk-In Care in Presque Isle for a number of years now and found it to be a vital resource for people to better access care when they need it,” said Jay Reynolds, MD, senior physician executive at the hospital.
“Walk-In Care can be a more convenient, more affordable option than a trip to the emergency room when an illness or injury happens outside of office hours or if you do not have a primary care provider,” Reynolds said.
Primary care is the first choice for regular healthcare needs, since it builds a relationship between the patient and provider, and emergency care is certainly the best choice for serious illness or injury, according to Reynolds. However, there is a gap between these two vital services. That is where Walk-In Care comes in.
A patient may not be able to get into their primary care provider in a time frame that works for them, either because there are no open appointments or because a time that is available is not compatible with the patient’s schedule. A trip to the emergency room can be time consuming and more expensive, often making it a poor option for something simple like an ear infection.
“Walk-In Care is just that…people are able to walk in for the care they need with no appointment, at the time that is convenient for them. We welcome people of all ages,” Reynolds said.
The site will be open daily and will only be closed on Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Like the Presque Isle clinic, Walk-In Care in Caribou will be open to all patients, regardless of who their primary care provider is. It will be staffed by providers who work in the Presque Isle clinic as well as in the Emergency Department of A.R. Gould Hospital.
