Photo By Petty Officer 1st Class James Stenberg | Dr. Rio Rita Maano, a pediatrician with Naval Hospital Pensacola, prepares to check...... read more read more
PENSACOLA, Fla. – Naval Hospital Pensacola has extended the hours of its Pediatrics Clinic to 8:30 p.m. Monday – Thursday and 6:00 p.m. on Fridays. These new hours should help parents who work during the day or are unable to set appointments during normal working hours.
The extended hours also come as part of an effort by the hospital to reduce emergency room utilization for non emergent care.
“We found that our ER utilization really spiked between 5 and 8 p.m. for clinic level symptoms,” said Ken Laube, Medical Home Port business manager with NHP. “Some of [those visits] are after work or after school, types of situations where parents just couldn’t make it in prior to that. By having longer pediatric availability, we hope to be more convenient for the patient.”
If a child needs to be seen for an emergency, then the ER is the place to go. However, if a child has clinical type symptom i.e., sore throat, congestion, cough, runny nose, simple rashes, ear ache, stomach ache or things that parents would normally call and make an appointment for, then taking advantage of the extended clinic hours is the best option.
“There are distinct benefits when children are seen by their pediatrician, a family physician nurse practitioner or another primary care manager,” said Laube. “In the emergency room, you don’t have that established history [as you do being seen in your own Medical Home Port].”
The later hours will still be by appointment and can be made by phone at (850)505-7121, through secure email utilizing RelayHealth or with TRICARE Online at www.tricareonline.com. There will be one provider along with a support staff including a scheduling agent. The later hours will not cause a decrease in any of the services provided during regular daytime hours.
“It will be full scope care,” said Cmdr. Kelly Hamon, department head for Pediatrics and Immunization Clinics, NHP.
“Preparations have been made so that if a child is seen here in the clinic during those extended hours and we need services such as labs, x-rays or medications, they will all be provided at that visit.”
Asked about the difference between ER and being seen at the Pediatrics Clinic, Hamon said, “If your child has an emergency, by all means get them to the emergency room. For the acute need, if they can’t get into see their PCM during the day, we now have an extended hour provider. I would rather [patients] come and see us in [Pediatrics] than go to the ER. We are the ones that see them and know them best.”
Editor’s Note: The hospital will be following the use of these extended hours closely. If the new hours are successful, it may lead to extended hours in other clinics.
| Date Taken: | 07.10.2013 |
| Date Posted: | 07.10.2013 11:33 |
| Story ID: | 109974 |
| Location: | ALABAMA, US |
| Web Views: | 127 |
| Downloads: | 2 |
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