SAN ANTONIO – If you're a parent, you know just how important it is to have nearby access to urgent medical care for your children if needed, but it's something that was lacking for families on the East Side until now.
Little Spurs Pediatric Urgent Care opened on East Houston Street near New Braunfels Avenue on Sept. 27, and it's been well received by families who live nearby.
“I’m glad to see that we're not the only side of town that's missing out on help, urgent care for our children,” said Billy Smith, who has a 4-year-old son.
In many cases, the center can replace emergency room visits.
“We provide services. About 80 percent that were previously performed in an ER can be performed in our pediatric urgent care centers,” said Thomas Spurgat, CEO of Little Spurs Urgent Care Centers.
Before the center opened, there were no emergency treatment centers for children on the East Side. Like so many other parents in the area, Smith felt the strain.
“When they get sick, they want to go to a place nearby. They don't want to go to a place across town. We're just happy that they opened up,” Smith said.
It’s a state-of-the-art facility, offering a wide range of services for children and young adults up to 21 years old.
Patients can go to the center “if they have a minor emergency, laceration, if they're sick, asthma attack,” Spurgat said. “We're on all the Medicaid programs, and we accept all insurance, and we do take self-paid patients and do discount their fee also.”
Little Spurs Pediatric Urgent Care on East Houston Street is already fully staffed, Spurgat said. It's capable of seeing up to 20,000 patients annually.