Hospital To Open Urgent Access Clinic In May

Nantucket Cottage Hospital announced Friday that it will open a new urgent access clinic in late May for patients with minor illnesses and injuries.

The clinic will launch on May 23 in the hospital's Anderson Building at 57 Prospect Street, and will be staffed by two family practitioners. Nantucket Cottage Hospital's public information manager James Lanza said the intention is to provide patients with another avenue to receive prompt medical attention while also alleviating wait times in the emergency department and the primary care clinic.

Lanza told the Current the new clinic will be staffed to handle 40 to 50 patient appointments per day.

“During the summer season we have thousands of patients coming to NCH who might already have primary care providers off island but seek care that might not meet the threshold for an emergency room visit, things like minor illnesses, sunburns, and sprains,” said Cynthia Winston, Administrative Director of the Physician Clinics at Nantucket Cottage Hospital. “Our Urgent Access Clinic will provide those patients a resource that then frees up our Emergency Department and family medicine providers to reduce wait times and increase the overall quality of care for patients.”

Patient volume at Nantucket Cottage Hospital exploded last summer, with the emergency department treating more than 1,800 patients in July alone.

Appointments at the urgent access clinic will be available from Monday through Friday, from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and on Saturdays from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Appointments can be booked online beginning on May 23rd, at nantuckethospital.org/urgentaccess, through Mass General Brigham’s Patient Gateway, or by calling (508) 825-1000.

Patients must be registered by Mass General Brigham before booking an appointment. If you're not already registered, call (866) 211-6588.