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PICKENS COUNTY—A second “Minute Clinic” has been opened in Pickens County, and officials hope that it will provide a quick alternative to a doctor’s office or emergency room.

The clinics, located in CVS stores in Easley and Clemson, provide services that might not be found in your local pharmacy very often.

“The CVS minute clinic is a minor care walk-in clinic that is located in some of the CVS’s around the country,” said Todd Chesney, assistant district manager of operations. “You don’t need an appointment, and it’s fast, easy, and convenient. You just sign in and we take you on a first come first serve basis.”

Chesney says the clinics are a source of easy care for people with minor illnesses.

“We take care of a lot of minor illnesses, and most things that people would normally go to the doctor for,” said Chesney. “We take care of things like sore throats, ear aches, coughs, colds, urinary tract infections. We also do a lot of vaccinations. We give a lot of flu shots and childhood immunizations.”

Chesney says the Minute Clinic also offers physical exams.

“We can do lab work such as checking cholesterol and blood sugar,” said Chesney. “We’re open seven days a week, including weekends and holidays.”

So far, Chesney says the new clinic on Tiger Boulevard in Clemson has already shown success.

“We opened the clinic in Clemson on Sept. 26 and we saw 31 people,” said Chesney. “There is definitely a need. There are a limited number of health care providers, and our population is just growing. A lot of times people will tell me that they originally tried to get an appointment with their doctor, but they couldn’t get in the same day.”

While the clinic only offers minor care services, Chesney says it beats going to an urgent care for something that is not that serious.

“There is a big percentage of people that end up having to go somewhere like an urgent care or emergency room, and really it’s just because they have an earache, or they have a bad cold or something,” said Chesney. “For a long time that’s been the only option, so we’re definitely a cost effective alternative to things like that.”

Since the Easley clinic opened, Chesney says it too has stayed busy.

“Our Easley clinic is one of our faster growing clinics,” said Chesney. “There is an underserved population in Easley. There are not enough doctors’ offices accepting new patients, and there are not enough facilities that people can go to after hours and on weekends. I know that they stay busy and help a lot of people.”

Chesney says the goal is to provide the best care in the most efficient way possible.

“Our ultimate goal is to make a difference people’s lives by promoting health and preventing illness in the future,” said Chesney. “I know that we are looking to open another two clinics this year in the Greenville Spartanburg area.”

Clinics are run by certified nurse practitioners, and are open seven days per week including holidays.

“We are a network with most major insurance carriers,” said Chesney. “We have the ability to process health insurance, and typically we will take the same copay that they would pay at their family doctor’s office.”