GuideWell plans six local clinics, including one in St. Petersburg

GuideWell Emergency Doctors will open six clinics in Pinellas and Hillsborough counties, including one on 4th Street in St. Petersburg.

The clinics, which will create about 160 new jobs, provide a low-cost alternative to the emergency room, the company said. On average, treatment at GuideWell Emergency Doctors costs about one-third of the cost and results in 30 percent fewer hospital admissions, compared to treatment in a hospital ER, Dr. Elana Schrader, GuideWell Health president, said in a news release.

The six clinics represent a big push into the area by GuideWell Emergency Doctors, which started in central Florida in 2014 and is part of GuideWell Mutual Holding Corp., based in Jacksonville. GuideWell Mutual also is the parent company of Florida Blue, Florida’s Blue Cross and Blue Shield plan.

GuideWell accepts most insurance plans and Medicare, or patients can pay on their own, the company said.

The St. Petersburg site will be at 1425 4th St. N. Other Pinellas County locations are at 163 N. Missouri Ave. in Largo and at 2375 Curlew Rd. in Palm Harbor.

In Hillsborough County, the three sites are: 4744 N. Dale Mabry Highway in central Tampa, 2330 E. Fletcher Ave. in east Tampa, and 16318 N. Dale Mabry Highway in north Tampa.

The new sites will open beginning in late 2020 and continuing into mid-2021.

The GuideWell Emergency Doctors clinics are operated by Crucial Care, a Jacksonville-based medical practice, and will treat both urgent and emergency medical needs for patients of all ages. They are staffed by board-certified emergency medicine physicians and bilingual staff. Each clinic is equipped with 13 or more examination rooms as well as on-site diagnostic equipment, including CT scan, x-ray, ultrasound and certified labs. The average wait time to see a board-certified emergency doctors is 20 minutes, and the average total length of a visit is one hour, the company said.

The clinics will be open seven days a week, with no appointment needed.

They also will create about 160 new jobs locally, including positions for medical professionals as well as facility directors, marketing and community relations professionals and patient care coordinators, among other jobs. Interested candidates should visit crucialcare.workable.com to find out more about position qualifications and how to apply.