To say that I shop at CVS is a vast understatement; I’m there not only snagging deals (though not as often of late), but I also pick up my prescriptions and satisfy any 11-PM Combos & Doritos needs there. I also journal, and thus, generally TRY to be aware of my surroundings; female safety and all that also comes into play. So when I learned that there was a minute clinic in my CVS, my first thought was ‘Where? In the chairs by the pharmacy?” Only after some extensive visualization did I remember a door to the side with a computer in front of it. I don’t know what I thought it was–a store room or something–but when I re-played my CVS in my head, that was the only location that made sense.
To start at the beginning:
I’ve been coughing. Coughing so badly that I’ve been to the point of throwing up. Coughing so badly that I decided to take TWO doses of Nyquil, knowing full well that taking 1 ml over the recommended dose ONCE a night, makes me throw up the next morning. I decided throwing up (which I did indeed) was worth getting an extra few hours of sleep. I went to CVS at 5 AM one night to get some Robitussin DM Max for Adults the next night. It did nothing.
My husband and I had been blaming it on the dry air, but this was getting ridiculous. We got a humidifier. No change. So I called my doctor, and was told they couldn’t give me any prescriptions over the phone, and oh, the earliest appointment was 5 days away. I nearly cried.
But then, my smart husband emailed “Why not try a clinic?”
A clinic? Hm. It was worth a shot! And once I found MinuteClinic, and learned that there was one INSIDE MY CVS, well, the decision was made.
So I signed in on the big, 32″ computer-screen station that I’d totally ignored, right under the big “minute clinic” sign I’d totally ignored, and was placed at No. 5 on the list. Each person seen for a “visit” takes about 20 minutes; if they come for a “shot” it’s generally about 10 minutes. So 50 minutes later, I’m in what I thought was a storeroom…and greeting My. Old. Doctor. So, automatic good assurance of quality care–she was my favorite doctor (or rather, RN, technically, I think) too!
My insurance was accepted just fine (I called ahead to check; even if it wasn’t, it’s $62.00 for a illness visit); she listened to my symptoms, took my blood pressure, temperature, and listened to my heart & breathing, felt lymph nodes or neck swelling or something. She gave me a diagnosis of acute bronchitis, and I walked out with an inhaler, daytime and nighttime cough medicines, and antibiotics. Now, I’d read that some doctors had criticized minute clinics for over-prescribing antibiotics, but she fully explained why I needed them, and explained their benefits…and besides, she was my old doctor! MinuteClinic doctors are also ONLY allowed to prescribe what the computer spits out…an extra safeguard, I assume.
Thus was my weekend, and the next few days at work, saved from much agony. I’m sleeping now, I’m feeling better, and I not only paid just as little as I would with the doctor, it saved me money by allowing me to go after work, instead of having to take time off, and was definitely quicker. So, I’m now a believer in MinuteClinics, and would highly recommend them if you’ve got a common condition and can’t get to your doctor for some reason. And that’s what worked for me!
See more WFMW @ We Are That Family.
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Old-Fashioned New England Saving 