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in Cullman, AL.

My husband was seen on a Friday morning. Appointment set up online. We arrived @ 8 am for an 815 appointment as directed. I could not get the app to take a picture of his ID. He is a 68 yo male w 36 hr hx max Temp 102.8 F orally, shaking chills, drenching sweats & “feels horrible”. C/O “raw” feeling throat initially but has coughed literally twice without any mucus production. No other physical complaints. Temp did drop to 98.6 oral with Tylenol & Advil. Temp 101.2 oral in clinic. Hx includes HTN, Dislipidemia, Arthritis. Never smoked.  We chose this clinic because it was Urgent Care which, per my search, meant they were equipped to handle more complicated issues than a simple walk in clinic. I mistakenly assumed this meant they could do labs onsite. They do not, except for rapid swabs. They did a rapid test for Covid & Flu via nasal swab. The provider read those results & reported to us that my husband had neither. She sent in a prescription for a gelcap for cough. They can draw labs but, blood is picked up late in afternoon by LabCorp. That means you do not get your lab results until the next day if at all. We did not get his at all. We received a notification via text that his results were available & we could view them by setting up an account. I did. We could NOT. We called for lab results Monday at the same time we asked for the results to be sent to his Primary Care Physician. He had continued to have the same symptoms over the weekend. Not worse but, not improved. Miserable weekend!!! Called his Dr Monday & was able to be worked in. We were told when we left there Friday after I encouraged the “Provider” to draw blood ( we discussed it & decided a CBC to get a baseline on White Blood cells was a good idea). We also discussed a Chest Xray. We agreed it was likely too soon as his lungs were clear on her exam, his O2 Sat was normal & he really had no respiratory symptoms. She also reported that his throat looked normal on exam. Our Blue Cross Blue Shield Blue Advantage insurance charges $90 for an Xray as an outpatient. My husband & I were concerned this was an unnecessary expense based on Physical Exam. This provider stated he had a “Viral Illness”. She explained that a viral illness can cause high temps even in an adult & make you “feel like you have been hit by a truck”. She encouraged us to return if he got worse. She advised us she was off the next day which was a Saturday but, her counterpart would call us with the results, “ if they had gotten them”. She explained that the clinic closes at 4 pm on Saturdays & she did not know when LabCorp would actually process the blood tests and report them out to the clinic. But, if they got them someone would call us with the results. According to the text I received from LabCorp , the clinic received the results at the same time we were notified they were available to view which was on Saturday. Since I was not able to view them or retrieve a copy of his office note on the site, I must assume the clinic never received them. We did ask the person who answered the phone if we could get a verbal report of his labs results. She asked us to hold. It sounded like the same person to me who came back on the line shortly & said, “there is nothing concerning”. I verified, “ his blood work looks OK”? She verified, there is nothing to worry about”. I thanked her & told her we were seeing his Family Physician at 2:30pm so please send the labs to her.  When we saw our Family Physician, she had received a copy of my husband’s lab results. In her interview & examination of my husband. She reported that my husband had an elevated white blood cell count on the blood that was drawn 3 days prior. She stated if the provider who saw him on Friday had seen these lab results with an elevated WBC and Neutrophil count, she would have seen that these point to a BACTERIAL Infection NOT a Viral Illness. Our physician gave him an antibiotic injection in the office and sent in a prescription for an oral antibiotic and a cough syrup. By the following morning, Tuesday, he was feeling significantly improved. In summary, No, I DO NOT recommend this clinic and I would NOT return. I am not sure about the provider. It is not her fault the clinic does not have an actual lab. So she had an incomplete assessment which actually is her responsibility. However, I am the one who questioned not doing labs & Xray & we discussed it. Otherwise she was ready to discharge us with only the negative nasal swabs for Covid & Flu. I feel there is fractionation in care here. If that provider had reported off to her counterpart on duty the next day & someone had been looking for my husband’s labs, they could have called us and told us that his labs indicated a need for an antibiotic vs “watchful waiting” ( my term). In addition, in social chatting with staff in their “in & out” trips doing different things; I learned that they are staffed by only the 3 people we had seen that day but, “hopefully we will make it & be busy enough to get a lab”. Personally, I have NEVER had to question if a facility or a provider had all they needed to provide adequate care. In the future if I am going somewhere unknown, I will ask.

I have been looking for a PCP. Although there is a waiting list for that, I was seen and taken care of. I do not go to the doctor. I hate being sick. While I will not look forward to going to the doctor. I will not dread this at all.

This was our first time going, and it was exceptional.!!! I will be bringing my babies back. Both ladies in there were great. I would definitely recommend going. If you are in need of some urgent care or if your doctors office is closed fabulous and a blessing.