Marshfield to gain urgent care clinic

Courtesy Google Maps

FastDoc Urgent Care is taking on space in Marshfield that previously was occupied by Burrell Behavioral Health.

A Texas-based health care provider is set to soon make its Missouri debut in Marshfield with the opening of an urgent care facility.

While officials with FastDoc Urgent Care are aiming at a soft opening as early as July 25, the official planned opening date for its clinic at 1350 Spur Drive, Ste. 230, is Aug. 1, said Jurry Van Ark, who co-owns the Allen, Texas-based business with Gail Lawson, Mike McWilliams and Dr. Y.C. Lee. The Marshfield clinic will be the company’s third facility, following its late 2020 debut in Allen, followed by a 2023 opening of a second location in Frisco, Texas.

Van Ark said the urgent care clinic will not only be the first of its kind in Marshfield but in Webster County, which exceeds 41,000 residents, according to U.S. Census Bureau data. The clinic in the Marshfield Center is owned via FastDoc Urgent Care Centers of Missouri LLC, he said. It fills roughly 1,500 square feet in space formerly occupied by Burrell Behavioral Health, which exited in June after opening a new $2 million, 5,210-square-foot clinic at 1069 Banning St., according to past Springfield Business Journal reporting. 

FastDoc services include addressing orthopedic injuries, treatment for infections, laceration repair, wound care, physical exams and on-site testing for flu, strep, COVID-19, mononucleosis, urinalysis and pregnancy. Additionally, the clinic will offer X-ray services and send out for tests such as blood counts, cholesterol and testosterone levels. It also will carry some medicine in-house, such as intravenous medication for nausea and hydration, as well as oral antibiotics.

All of FastDoc’s owners are medical providers with decades of experience in emergency departments, Van Ark said, adding he’s worked for over 20 years as a physician assistant for various Texas health care systems and was previously a paramedic.

“One of the operational philosophies that we’ve tried to maintain since we opened is keep people out of the emergency department,” he said, adding the new FastDoc clinic will accept most major insurance plans, as well as local and federally funded insurance programs.

The clinic is primarily a walk-in facility but will take appointments, Van Ark said, adding startup costs will be approximately $100,000. He said FastDoc signed a five-year lease for an undisclosed rate with Marshfield Center Inc. The clinic will have five exam rooms and a treatment room.

“We can actually see quite a few people. If we’re running five exam rooms, we can get 50 people a day through there without any problem whatsoever,” Van Ark said. “It’s extremely unlikely we’ll see 50 a day. We expect to see about 20 to 30 a day.”

While final hiring is wrapping up, Van Ark said the clinic is expected to have 12-14 employees, including two full-time providers and as many as eight medical assistants, who will be a mix of full- and part-time workers. He said Dr. Sam Alexander, who is an emergency care physician at CoxHealth and medical director for the Marshfield Fire Department, has local oversight of the clinic.

Van Ark said FastDoc came to Marshfield through ongoing conversations with local officials, which stretched back several years. Van Ark and Webster County Health Unit Administrator Scott Allen – a longtime friend going back to their days working as paramedics together in California – discussed the idea back in 2021 but agreed the timing wasn’t right amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Subsequent discussions, combined with the availability of space with Burrell exiting its 10-year home in the Marshfield Center, ultimately brought the clinic to town.

The clinic initially will be open 9 a.m.-7 p.m., Van Ark said, adding the intent is to expand hours to 8 a.m.-8 p.m. if demand and staffing dictates.