Riverside Healthcare puts the health and wellness information you need well within reach.

Taylor Leddin-McMaster (Host): Hello, listeners. Thank you for tuning in to the Well Within Reach podcast, brought to you by Riverside Healthcare. I'm your host, Taylor Leddin-McMaster, and joining me today is Akash Rana, Director of Immediate Care and Workforce Health, and Cheryl Hanson, nurse practitioner with Immediate Care. They're here to talk about the services available at Riverside's Immediate Care locations. Welcome.

Akash Rana: Hey, thank you for having us on.

Host: Yeah, thanks for being here today. Akash, we're going to start with you. For people who may not be fully aware and understand of what immediate care is, how would you describe it?

Akash Rana: Yeah. So, our immediate care clinics are designed to help bridge the gap between your primary care provider and the emergency room. We treat all illnesses, injuries that require prompt attention but aren't life-threatening. It's a convenient option when you can't get in to see your doctor or need care outside of normal business hours. So, we're open extended hours in the evening and also on the weekends.

Host: Great. Cheryl, what would you say are some of the biggest misconceptions when it comes to immediate care?

Cheryl Hansen: Well, one of the biggest misconceptions is that the immediate care only treats minor colds or the flu. In reality, we can evaluate and treat a wide range of illnesses and injuries. We perform X-rays, lab testing, we do minor laceration repairs, we treat work-related injuries, and much more.

Another misconception is that patients need an appointment. We welcome walk-ins as well.

Host: Great. Akash, what would you say are some of the most surprising conditions or issues that can actually be treated at Immediate Care? Like, Cheryl was just saying, it's not just these minor things, but some more substantial stuff.

Akash Rana: Yeah, a lot of people are surprised, to learn that, you know, we can perform stitches for lacerations. Basic cuts, we can see you for that. We have X-ray on site. So, we can evaluate you for fractures. We treat burns, splinter removals, any types of rashes, any sports injuries. We also do things like urinary tract infections, ear infections, allergic reactions. Those can all be treated in our Immediate Care clinics. So, definitely a lot more things than a lot of people realize.

Host: Yeah, definitely. Speaking of which, Cheryl, are there services patients are consistently surprised to learn are available?

Cheryl Hansen: There sure are. Patients are often surprised that we do offer on-site X-rays, lab testing, occupational services, including drug and breath alcohol testing. We do DOT physicals, pre-employment physicals. We do sports physicals, school physicals, vaccinations, and treatment for workplace injuries. Many people don't realize that they can actually receive comprehensive diagnostic and treatment services in one visit.

Host: Yeah, I bet that is often like, "Oh, wow, you guys are pretty robust here." So, that's pretty cool.

You had both kind of touched on examples of services and injuries. Akash, what are some more examples of injuries that don't necessarily require an emergency room visit but can be handled at immediate care?

Akash Rana: We can take care of a lot of things iin the immediate care clinic. So, simple strains, sprains, minor fractures, basic cuts that just require simple sutures or glue. Minor burns can be treated in our office. And so, with having X-ray, you know, we can get imaging in real time and then be able to splint or cast if we needed to. And in those situations, after that, we can do that initial treatment and then also refer to a specialist or their primary care provider when needed.

Host: Nice. So, there's kind of a pipeline there. That's great.

Akash Rana: Yeah.

Host: Well, wonderful. Before we continue our conversation, we're going to take a moment to talk about the importance of primary care.

At Riverside, our primary care providers are right here in your community, offering personalized care for you and your family, close to home and connected to the specialists and services you may need. Having a primary care provider means having someone who knows you, listens to you, and helps you stay well through every stage of life, from annual checkups and preventative screenings to managing everyday concerns when they pop up, because remarkable care should never be out of reach. Remarkable care right where you live.

To find a primary care provider who's right for you and your family, visit myrhc.net/acceptingnew. And we're back talking about immediate care services. So as we were saying before, if it's taken a bit to get into your primary care and you need to be seen right away, immediate care is the perfect solution for that.

Cheryl, can immediate care handle things like minor fractures or sprains?

Cheryl Hansen: Yes. We routinely evaluate and treat sprains, strains, and many minor fractures. We have X-ray capabilities on site, and we can provide splints and braces when appropriate and coordinate follow-up care with orthopedic specialists when needed.

Host: Awesome. And what about things like dehydration, migraines, or asthma flare-ups?

Cheryl Hansen: Yep, we can see those too. These are all common reasons people do visit the immediate care. We can assess dehydration, provide treatment. We help manage severe migraines and treat asthma flare-ups. Our goal is to quickly evaluate symptoms, provide relief, and determine whether additional care is needed, and help connect patients with their primary care providers or find them one if they need to, and even help them schedule their appointments.

Host: Awesome. Akash, you had mentioned the X-ray on site. Can you tell us a little bit more about those imaging services and any lab testing that's available at immediate care?

Akash Rana: Yeah, absolutely. So, all of our immediate care locations have the opportunity to have X-rays done right on site. We have trained techs that can draw blood, so we can send it out for lab work. We can send out urine samples, stool samples. So, we have Riverside's lab that we can utilize to do any further testing that's needed. So, it helps us evaluate our patients and get them answers quickly without having to go somewhere else.

Host: Yeah, that's really convenient. Cheryl, I'm curious, can you share a memory of a patient who's come in who was surprised that the immediate care was able to help them versus them thinking that they maybe had to go to the ER?

Cheryl Hansen: Yeah. I remember one patient that comes to mind that came in after a fall and was convinced that they'd need to spend hours sitting in the ER and incur a large bill. We were able to evaluate the injury. We got some X-rays there on site, and we were able to diagnose, provide the treatment, and even coordinate his follow-up care all in one visit. He was genuinely surprised how much we could accomplish in immediate care and how much time and money was saved.

Host: Yeah. I bet that happens a lot, and that's something that is important for people to know that there is an option rather than sitting and waiting for something that may not be an emergency per se, but you can be seen and taken care of quicker at immediate care, and it helps lessen the load of the ER, which is usually a hectic place.

So, for people to be able to go to immediate care, they need to know where it is. Akash, can you tell us where the immediate cares are located and how patients can make an appointment?

Akash Rana: Yeah. So currently, we have five convenient locations. We're located in Kankakee, Bourbonnais, Coal City, Watseka, and Bradley at our Atrium campus. Patients can walk in without an appointment, or they can reserve a spot online through Riverside's website in myChart. And again, we offer those extended hours after your primary care provider is closed and on weekends. So, definitely trying to make it easy to receive care when you need it most.

Host: Yeah, definitely. Was there anything else either of you wanted to share with our listeners today?

Akash Rana: Our immediate cares have a lot to offer and I think it's great for our community.

Host: Absolutely. Well, thank you both for what you do and for being here today. And thank you listeners for tuning into the Well Within Reach podcast.

Be sure to like and subscribe to Well Within Reach on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. To learn more about immediate care services at Riverside, go to myrhc.net/ic.