Chicago Doctor Uses Telemedicine, Outdoor Testing to Meet Demand During COVID-19 Crisis

CHICAGO, March 25, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Rahul Khare, MD, has led healthcare relief efforts following earthquakes, hurricanes and other natural disasters around the world. When the COVID-19 pandemic struck the United States, he immediately used his experience to take action at home. Khare is the founder and CEO of Innovative Care. Among his medical practices is Innovative Express Care, an urgent care on Chicago's North side, that has been instrumental in helping the North side community fight COVID-19. Khare has screened more than 500 patients for the novel coronavirus to date using telemedicine. The clinic's patient volume rivals that of large hospitals in the area. Innovative Express Care has tested almost 250 patients to date.

"As an independent clinic, we were able to activate for COVID-19 very quickly," said Khare. "We have used telemedicine to deliver efficient care for years, so that portal became the centerpiece of our COVID-19 response. With telemedicine, we can see a high volume of patients, while limiting exposure to the virus."

Telemedicine is the safest, most efficient way to deliver care during a pandemic. The virtual appointment with a physician, usually Khare himself, is key in limiting exposure to the virus. It also allows patients to avoid a crowded waiting room where they could expose others, or themselves, to illness, and allows for safe testing of those who may have the virus.

Khare sends patients who require medical testing to an outdoor testing tent at Innovative Express Care. Patients are able to wait in their car until it is their turn, thereby limiting exposures. If further testing or X-rays are needed, the patient is safely brought into the clinic at the same site. The three-step process Khare has used at Innovative Express Care has helped address the medical need on Chicago's North side.

Step 1:  Screening via a telemedicine appointment with a physician
Step 2:  Medical tests (if warranted) at our outdoor medical tent or urgent care clinic (if necessary based on symptoms)
Step 3:  Follow-up appointment via telemedicine (if symptoms worsen, or COVID-19 test is positive). Patients with COVID-19 have follow-up appointments every three days.

Khare's primary care practice, therapy team and other clinicians are also using telemedicine to provide essential medical care during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Prior to opening Innovative Care, Khare spent 12 years as an emergency medicine physician and associate professor at Northwestern Medicine. During his tenure, he received several federally funded grants, and published more than 20 peer-reviewed articles on how to improve healthcare.

For more information on Innovative Express Care and screening for COVID-19, visit www.innovativeexpresscare.com

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SOURCE Innovative Express Care