New urgent care option available to those on Rice health care plans

FROM RICE NEWS STAFF REPORTS

Faculty and staff who are enrolled in a Rice health care plan have a new and nearby option when they sprain an arm or have a scratchy throat but can’t get an immediate appointment with their primary care doctor.

Baylor Clinic’s Family Medicine Express Care Center, which was previously available to only Baylor College of Medicine faculty, staff and students, is now open to Rice faculty and staff and their family members age 12 and older who are on a Rice benefit plan.

The Express Care Center focuses on urgent treatment of one-time health care needs — such as sinus problems, urinary or intestinal infections and allergic reactions — rather than routine checkups or chronic disease management. The goal of the center is to see patients on the day an appointment is requested, should their primary physician not be able to see them.

No referrals are required to use this center — even for those enrolled in the Rice Care HMO plan. Rice has arranged with Aetna for all of the university’s plans to have direct access to the center. Patients may walk in to the center; however, to minimize waiting time, appointments are recommended.

Lead by Dr. Jeff Steinbauer, professor of family and community medicine, the clinic is a short walk from the Rice campus at 6620 Main St., Suite 1250. It is open from noon to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and closed on Baylor College of Medicine holidays and weekends.

For more information, download the flier at http://people.rice.edu/emplibrary/ExpressCareCenter.pdf. To make an appointment, call 713-798-9355.