MedFast Urgent Care Centers Offer an Alternative to Expense and Waits At Hospital ERs

MedFast Urgent Care Centers offer an alternative to the expense and the waits

BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA – Hospital emergency rooms perform critical life-saving work, but they are not the best alternative for treating the many minor bumps and bruises that are unfortunately part of life.

Because ERs are geared to handle serious and complex medical incidents, their services are expensive, and less critical cases are triaged according to severity, leaving patients with minor emergencies to wait long hours for treatment.

These patients may have an issue that, like a broken finger, requires immediate attention, but it is not considered a true emergency, so they are pushed to the back of the line, no matter how long they have been waiting, if more serious cases present themselves.

If they go another route and try to schedule a visit to their family physician, they may find themselves waiting for days for an appointment.

What can a patient do?

MedFast Urgent Care Centers offer an alternative to the expense and the waits.

“We’re a cost-efficient, affordable, faster alternative for treatment,” said Dr. David Williams, president and chief medical officer of the practice he founded in 2007.

“Ninety percent of our patients are in and out of the office in less than an hour, unless there are labs or procedures needed.”
To treat the complexity of cases that come in, hospitals must have expensive medical equipment, which patients help subsidize through higher costs in emergency care.

In contrast, a walk-in clinic like MedFast does not have to purchase and maintain some of the costly life-saving equipment that a hospital does, which translates into a significantly lower bill for patients with minor emergencies.

The largest true urgent care in the area, MedFast is the go-to place for rapid, affordable help with anything from smashed fingers to foreign bodies in the eyes. With 12 offices from Palm Bay to Edgewater, MedFast is never too far away.

Open from 8 a.m. until 7 p.m. seven days a week except for Thanksgiving and Christmas, MedFast offices also offer the convenience of being able to visit the office on your own schedule. All patients need do is walk in, since no appointments are needed.
The critical need for such a practice model drove Dr. Williams to start MedFast Urgent Care Centers.

“The ERs were getting costlier and busier,” he said. “We are filling a need in the county, because we are exponentially faster and less expensive.”

In fact, demand was so intense that MedFast has grown rapidly, averaging the addition of two new offices a year. Offices are located in Cocoa Beach, Melbourne(two), Titusville(two), Merritt Island, Pt. St. John, Palm Bay, Rockledge, Viera(two) and Edgewater. The newest office opened in Viera in December of 2019.

Treating patients from infants to the elderly, MedFast accepts most insurance carriers. Always up front about costs, prices are posted in the reception room, so there are no surprises.

MedFast hospital-level physicians, nurses, medical assistants and technicians are highly trained and experienced in urgent care, and maintain all relevant licensing, certifications, and credentials as required by law.

Dr. Williams, who oversees the clinical staff, served as chairman of the Department of Emergency Medicine, Wuesthoff Health System(now Steward Health Care).

For several years during his tenure there, Wuesthoff earned the Health Grades Emergency Medicine Excellence Award, presented to hospitals performing in the top five percent in the nation for emergency medicine excellence.

Dr. Williams is also medical director for Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Fire Rescue, as well as for the fire rescue departments of the cities of Cape Canaveral, Titusville, Rockledge, and Cocoa.

Fully Equipped 0ffices

MedFast Offices are fully equipped with digital x-ray machines, EKGs, urinalysis testing, blood tests, and spirometry testing equipment to handle the diagnostics and testing of any non-life threatening issue.

“We are also able to perform a wide range of minor procedures, laboratory services, and other testing that you may need,” said Dr. Williams.

The practices perform a wide range of procedures, including splinting, suturing of cuts and lacerations, injections and vaccinations, and IV fluids.

Abdominal pain, animal bites, insect stings, allergic reactions, asthma attacks, abrasions, back and neck pain, colds and flu, sore throats, fractures, rashes, sprains and strains, and urinary tract infections are some of the issues MedFast routinely treats.

Patient testimonials speak to the service they receive.

Gary was visiting from out of town when he got stuck by a catfish while fishing the Indian River.

“When I saw the medical staff within a half hour they already had all the necessary info for me, and prescriptions were also ready,” he said.

Amy had just moved to Viera when she encountered a minor emergency.

“I walked in at 8 a.m. and I was seen within 20 minutes,” she said.

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