EAU CLAIRE – Marshfield Clinic Health System continues to create access for adult and pediatric patients in response to the closure of two Chippewa Valley hospitals and more than a dozen clinics.
Marshfield Clinic has created more space in providers’ schedules to allow same-day appointments, which are available for most Marshfield Clinic services, including adult and pediatric primary and specialty care weekdays 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. We will try to schedule you with your current provider at your preferred Clinic location when possible. If your provider isn’t available, we will schedule you with another Clinic provider at your preferred location nearby. Call 877-369-6966 for more information or to schedule an appointment.
“One of the reasons using same-day access is important is to reduce usage of emergency departments and urgent care for patient care that doesn’t require that level of service,” said Miriam Gehler, administrative director of regional operations. “The recent hospital closures have resulted in increased patient use of emergency and urgent care services, which can cause delay in care for all patients.”
When you or your child gets sick or hurt, it can be difficult to determine the best course of action.
- For a life threatening situation, please go to an emergency department or call 911 if necessary.
- For non-life threatening injuries or illnesses that require immediate medical attention, visit Marshfield Clinic urgent care and walk-in service locations.
- For health conditions, such as fevers, coughs, gastrointestinal illness, skin conditions and many others, consider virtual care, same-day access or scheduling an appointment.
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Providing care throughout western Wisconsin
While healthcare throughout the area is undergoing many changes, Marshfield Clinic is making changes to expand care in the Chippewa Valley.
Lake Hallie Center urgent care is scheduled to open by summer to provide patients with another location for care.
Marshfield Medical Center-Eau Claire has more than doubled its labor and delivery beds following the expansion of its obstetrics unit from eight beds to 20 beds. The unit, which opened in late March, can accommodate an additional 550 births a year.
“This expansion gives Chippewa Valley expectant mothers reassurance that they have access to quality care for their expanding family, said Kendal Stockel, nurse manager of the MMC-Eau Claire Birth Center. “Patients are having a good experience overall. When I round, they like how quiet and homey it is over there.”
The majority of patients using the unit are postpartum mothers, but the unit can be used for patients recovering from other women’s health conditions such as mastitis and a hysterectomy.
U.S. News & World Report recently recognized MMC-Eau Claire on its list of “High Performing Hospitals” for maternity care access. The hospital had 446 births in 2023, and more than 200 births so far in 2024. The MMC-Eau Claire midwifery team, which recently assisted in its 10,000th midwifery birth, re-introduced its services at Marshfield Clinic Chippewa Falls Center.
