SVHC Launches Virtual Urgent Care

BENNINGTON, VT—July 10, 2020—Southwestern Vermont Health Care (SVHC) has launched a virtual urgent care platform called CAREqd to improve access to medical care. In medical terminology, “qd” is shorthand for “every day.” Through CAREqd the community can receive urgent care at any time of day, every day. CAREqd can be accessed through a live, secure video connection on its website, careqd.com, or a mobile app for smartphones.

“Our mission of exceptional care drives us to provide our community with increased access and convenience,” said Trey Dobson, MD, the medical center’s chief medical officer. “The CAREqd virtual urgent care platform is a way to extend the use of technology to make high-quality care even easier for patients.”

The CAREqd platform provides patients access to urgent care around the clock every day of the year, including weekends and holidays. Patients can access urgent care from anywhere by phone or from an internet-enabled device, whether they are at home, at work, or traveling. The mobile app makes it quick and easy to access a provider from a smartphone or tablet.

CAREqd is secure, confidential, and easy to use. Patients create a free account online or via the mobile app and fill out their brief medical history. There is no cost to activate the account. When they need it, patients can request a video or phone visit at a time that fits their schedule or see a provider right away. 

The CAREqd providers can diagnose, recommend treatment, and prescribe medication for a wide range of conditions, including allergies, cough, diarrhea, earache, fever, flu, insect bites and stings, nausea, pink eye, rash, respiratory problems, and more.

SVMC has partnered with MDLive, a national virtual urgent care system, to develop CAREqd. Partnering with MDLive also brings a broad network of over 1,000 providers, including physicians, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners. When patients use CAREqd they can choose from providers that have particular expertise and experience in diagnosing and treating urgent care conditions over the phone and using video.

The cost is $70 per visit and is payable by credit, debit, or Health Savings Account cards.

“We are excited to offer our region the only 24/7 urgent care service,” said Dobson. “Due to the pandemic, there is a heightened effort to limit the number of patients in waiting rooms and their exposure to other patients, which makes CAREqd very relevant today.”  

Complete information, including links to download the CAREqd app, is available at careqd.com and from Southwestern Vermont Health Care’s web site, svhealthcare.org.

About SVHC:
Southwestern Vermont Health Care (SVHC) is a comprehensive, preeminent, health care system providing exceptional, convenient, and affordable care to the communities of Bennington and Windham Counties of Vermont, eastern Rensselaer and Washington Counties of New York, and northern Berkshire County in Massachusetts. SVHC includes Southwestern Vermont Medical Center (SVMC), Southwestern Vermont Regional Cancer Center, the Centers for Living and Rehabilitation, and the SVHC Foundation. SVMC includes 25 primary and specialty care practices.

The medical center’s primary and specialty care clinics continue to see patients in person and remotely through telemedicine appointments, where appropriate. Those who need or would prefer in-person appointments can use the health system’s virtual waiting room, which allows them to wait in their car and receive a text message when their exam room is ready.

Southwestern Vermont Medical Center provides exceptional care without discriminating on the basis of an individual’s age, race, ethnicity, religion, culture, language, physical or mental disability, socioeconomic status, sex, sexual orientation, or gender identity or expression. Language assistance services, free of charge, are available at 1-800-367-9559.