DOT: PACC happy with new space
Greg Plemmons, M.D., director of Outpatient Clinical Activities, has watched the growth of the walk-in Pediatric Acute Care Clinic (PACC) for years.
It operates full-time five days a week, with hours on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., and has become one of the most popular such clinics in the region.
“We see 12,000 visits a year,” Plemmons said. “No appointment needed.” In addition to serving as the acute care clinic for the thousands of children who receive their primary care at Vanderbilt, local pediatricians as well as Vanderbilt subspecialists also refer patients to PACC for further evaluation and management.
“We see perhaps 40 or 50 children on a normal day, and up to 130 in peak flu season. We treat children for everything from the common cold to early signs of serious disease.”
The PACC has been located on the fifth floor of Medical Center East (MCE) since 1996. It has become so busy that it has burst at the seams on busy days, with families waiting in hallways.
The move to a larger clinic space at the Doctors' Office Tower at the Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt on Oct. 3 is long-awaited by both the PACC and another busy clinic called the continuity clinic.
Not only will the Doctors' Office Tower (DOT) at the Children's Hospital be a more convenient, less-confusing location, but the space the clinics will occupy on the 8th floor will be a great improvement.
“We are going from approximately 11 exam and one procedure room to 14 exam rooms and four procedure rooms,” Plemmons said.
“The waiting room is much roomier, will feature a lactation room for breastfeeding mothers, and will hopefully continue the tradition of volunteers reading books to children as part of Jo's Reach Out and Read program.”