EUREKA SPRINGS, Ark. (KY3) – Going to the emergency room can be expensive, but sometimes, that’s your only option for healthcare in rural areas. However, one Arkansas hospital is changing that.
Every patient who comes into the Eureka Springs Hospital will be evaluated as always, but then they will be sent to one of two places depending on the severity of their case.
Patients needing immediate and intense care will be sent to the emergency department, but now there’s a second, more affordable option for patients with more minor sicknesses or injuries.
The Hybrid Emergency Department and Urgent Care Model will make care more affordable for patients, allowing them to pay urgent care prices rather than emergency prices for the same standard of care.
It’s something that’s very uncommon in rural healthcare, but it’s exactly what works for providing the best patient care.
“Rural healthcare is changing,” said hospital CEO Tiffany Means, “and if we want to keep our hospitals here to remain open for the future, we have to continue looking for innovative ways to serve our communities. We listen to our community, especially, and then center our build around the communities express needs, concerns, and then what the analysis is telling us for our rural area.”
Before insurance, urgent care patients will pay a $200 facility fee and a $200 professional provider fee. Before urgent care was an option, those costs would have been 48% higher.
“A lot of people worry about their bill before they even walk into the hospital,” Means said. “We want to be able to give that comfort to know that there is an option for them as they go through the emergency department. If they have a minor illness or a moderate injury, then they could be able to be seen on the urgent care side, and that keeps the costs lower for the patient.”
Wanting to make healthcare more affordable is nothing new for the hospital. It’s already been providing financial coaching for patients who struggle with paying their bill.
“We want to be able to not make it about the stress of the bill,” said Means, “but we know that care continues past the treatment of the patient. That’s really important for us in serving our community as well. We’re here to make sure that we can have affordable care for our community and then work with them to be able to pay those.”
The hybrid urgent care is open. The emergency department continues to operate 24/7.
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