Mid-Columbia Medical Center has opened a new Transitional Care Clinic to
help patients transition from hospital to home. The clinic is staffed
by MCMC hospitalists, physicians who specialize in caring for hospitalized
patients and who are uniquely qualified to support patients in the transition
of their care after discharge.
“Transitional care clinics have been shown to reduce hospital readmission
rates, but most importantly, they provide easy access to timely follow-up
care for recently hospitalized patients,” said Serene Perkins, MD,
chief medical officer at MCMC.
MCMC primary care patients who are discharged by an MCMC hospitalist will
be scheduled for an appointment at the Transitional Care Clinic within
14 days of hospital discharge. The clinic staff will work closely with
the primary care provider and provide them with information regarding
the hospitalization and the transition to the home setting.
“The transitional care setting also provides an opportunity to make
patients aware of other programs available to them, such as a chronic
care management or other case management programs designed to help them
achieve better health outcomes,” said Dr. Perkins.
The MCMC Transitional Care Clinic is located inside the MCMC Surgical Clinic
at 1810 E 19th Street, The Dalles. The Transitional Care Clinic is open
Wednesdays and Fridays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and can be reached at (541) 296-6101.