Does the new system mean patients will have to go to a hospital if they need medical care in the middle of the night?
Anyone who visits Urgent Care with a serious medical problem after hours is already sent directly to a hospital. Even now, when Urgent Care is open 24 hours a day, MIT Medical’s x-ray and laboratory services are closed at night, so patients needing those services must go to a hospital. Though it may seem that patients are losing the convenience of on-campus overnight medical care, having to call a triage nurse instead will actually be more efficient. The triage nurse can help patients avoid an unnecessary late-night trip outside, or they can save time by advising the patient to bypass Urgent Care and go directly to a hospital.
