Locals get to see new Columbus facility

 

COLUMBUS – On Monday June 17, Mercy Urgent Care opened its doors to the public for tours and to celebrate a ribbon cutting ceremony. Mercy Urgent Care is a not for profit organization with seven locations across western North Carolina.  

Representatives of Mercy Urgent Care said, “Mercy is different from other urgent cares because we are a not for profit organization. They (other urgent care providers) go into an area were there is a need, where there may be competition, in order to make a profit.”  

“Because Mercy is a not for profit, we go where there is a need, not necessarily where we can make a profit. We focus on sustainability rather than making a profit, that is our model.” 

Columbus was selected because it represented a rural area that had a need for an urgent care provider with easy access from I-26 and from U.S. 74. “Our mission is to go where we are needed, and that is the more rural areas. That is how we picked Columbus,” representatives said.  

“We know that there is a focus on sports in this area from the elementary level and up,” representatives said. “We have teamed up with a durable medical equipment company in the area, they have provided free ankle braces as a preventative to injuries.” 

Mercy Urgent Care has between 30 and 40 providers that they rotate. Representatives of Mercy said that they have already hired two full time providers for the Columbus location but they will rotate with some of the other Mercy locations.  

Mercy Urgent Care in Columbus has their own X-Ray room and equipment, a trauma room, as well as two rooms for patient visits. Representatives of Mercy said that they do not want to replace a primary care physician; they want to provide care during hours that other primary care offices are unavailable.

“We like to partner with local primary care providers,” representatives said.  “It’s not our goal to take patients. We work the later hours and weekends. We are open seven days a week. We just want to see patients during those acute hours and help them get back to their primary care.”  

Mercy Urgent Care Columbus is located on Hwy. 108 less than a quarter mile from Exit 67 off of  Interstate 26 adjacent to Entegra Bank. It is the seventh Western North Carolina location for the nonprofit organization which is headquartered in Asheville.

 

By Samuel Robinson 

Sam.robinson@tryondailybulletin.com