Northwell-GoHealth opens new urgent care clinic in Deer Park

Northwell Health-GoHealth Urgent Care has opened a new clinic in Deer Park, the chain's 33rd location on Long Island.

The walk-in center at 504 Commack Road provides treatment for non-life-threatening illnesses and injuries, on-site X-ray imaging, COVID-19 testing and treatment and flu vaccines. The clinic, which opened last week, is open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday and from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends.

Northwell Health-GoHealth operates 17 clinics in Suffolk County and 16 in Nassau County, and plans to open two more Nassau locations later this year. Its Lindenhurst location opened in December.

“What we're seeing is an increasing propensity for consumers to consume care closer to where they live,” as well as near their workplaces, Vivek Taparia, who oversees the chain’s New York area locations as market president of Northwell Health-GoHealth Urgent Care, said in an interview Monday.

The pandemic raised awareness of urgent care clinics, which played a prominent role in providing vaccinations and treatment, Taparia said. In addition, there is growing demand for “on-demand” medical treatment, rather than appointments scheduled far in advance, he said. 

“We increasingly have the ability to have goods and packages delivered to us” by ordering them from handheld devices, Taparia said. “That increasing consumer desire for on-demand care has also accelerated awareness of the urgent care setting.”

Among the other major providers of walk-in medical treatment on Long Island are CityMD, which operates 36 urgent care clinics in Nassau and Suffolk counties, and the urgent care centers operated by Optum and PM Pediatrics.

There are more than 11,000 urgent care centers across the United States, a  proliferation that is growing by 7% a year, according to the Urgent Care Association, a trade group.

The industry has seen “tremendous growth,” with a 60% increase in patient volume since 2019, said Michael Miscisin, a managing director with tax and advisory firm Grant Thornton LLP.

The need for COVID-19 testing, treatment and vaccinations has declined since the peak of the pandemic, but urgent care centers still face strong demand, especially for conditions such as respiratory, ear and urinary tract infections, sprains and broken bones, Miscisin said. “These are really things that you cannot wait to get an appointment with your [primary care provider] for,” he said.

And with major corporations, including Amazon and CVS, acquiring urgent-care businesses, Miscisin said, "the growth is expected to continue."

By Maura McDermott

maura.mcdermott@newsday.commauramcdermott

Maura McDermott covers health care and other business news on Long Island.