Message Reminders for Urgent Care and Quick Care Appointments
You don’t need to sit in our Urgent Care or Quick Care waiting rooms for your upcoming appointment.
After you reserve your appointment at uihc.org or through MyChart, sign up to receive On My Way text messages or email updates to see your place in line and when you are expected to be seen in the clinic. You’ll spend less time in the waiting room and arrive at the clinic when we’re ready for you.
Signing up for message reminders is simple
When you use the On My Way sign up via uihc.org or MyChart, you will be asked to enter your email and your phone number.
If you wish to receive text messages, fill out the phone field with a valid mobile phone number and check the “Send me text notifications” checkbox.
If you wish to receive email messages, fill out your email field and do not check the “Send me text notifications” checkbox.
If you would not like to receive any messages, do not add an email and do not check the “Send me text notifications” checkbox.
What text message reminders will I receive?
Initial Signup Text
When you reserve a spot at an Urgent Care or Quick Care clinic, and opt in to text message reminders, you will receive an initial text message that states your expected to arrive time at the selected clinic.
Examples:
UI Health Care: Thanks for choosing Bettendorf - Lincoln Road - Urgent Care! We expect to see you at 11:19 AM. You can check in online.
UI Health Care: Thanks for choosing Coralville - Holiday Road - Urgent Care! You're number 2 in line. We expect to see you in 4 hours 48 minutes at 3:08 PM.
Before you arrive to the clinic
If your expected to be seen time is far in the future, you do not need to come to the waiting room early. We will send you text message updates as your status in the waiting queue changes.
The text messages you can expect to receive before you arrive in the clinic waiting room are:
Sometimes the clinic is operating more slowly than expected, or, the medical teams may need to adjust people's place in line to care for a patient with urgent medical needs.
If an adjustment is made that pushes your place lower in the waiting queue, or adjusts the expected to be seen time, you will receive a notice.
Example:
UI Health Care: The clinic is experiencing some delays. We expect to see you at 10:41 AM.
If you have not yet arrived to the clinic, and it is 30 minutes before your expected arrival time, you will receive a reminder text message.
This can be a helpful message reminder to begin traveling to the clinic, depending on where you are located, and the time you know it takes to drive to the Urgent or Quick Care you are visiting.
Example:
UI Health Care: This is a reminder for your 11:20 AM appointment at Bettendorf - Lincoln Road - Urgent Care.
If you still have not arrived to the clinic, and it is only 5 minutes before your expected arrival time, you will receive an additional reminder.
This reminder will reinforce the expected arrival time, and that if you arrive more than 15 minutes past that time, you will lose your place in line.
Example:
UI Health Care: Please make your way to the clinic. If you don't arrive within 15 minutes of your arrival time of 11:35 AM, you will lose your place in line.
If you do not check in to the clinic within the 15 minute window, you will lose your place in line. You can still come into the clinic, but your arrival to the clinic will be treated as a walk in, and you will not have your same spot in line.
A message will be sent to you acknowledging that this is what you should expect if you choose to arrive to the clinic.
Example:
UI Health Care: We couldn't hold your place in line. You can reschedule via MyChart or wait in line again when you arrive.
We want to make sure you are aware of where you are in the waiting queue, especially when you are nearing the top spot. As you move up in the queue, if it has been more than 15 minutes since the last time we sent you a message, you will receive a message alerting you of that progress.
We have that 15 minute window to make sure we are not overwhelming you with texts.
However, once you reach the third spot in the queue, you will always get a message when you progress up from 2, and eventually to the first position.
Example:
UI Health Care: You're now number 3 in line and your estimated wait time is 1 hours 33 minutes. We expect to see you at 2:34 PM.
When you arrive to the clinic
Once you arrive to the clinic and have checked in, you still will receive text messages that update your status. That can also happen after you have been roomed, before you meet with a clinicians.
You can also keep track of your place in line on the waiting queue board in the clinic waiting room.
When you arrive at the clinic and check in, if you have arrived before your expected arrival time, you will receive a message that acknowledges your current position in line, and when you can expect to be seen.
Example:
UI Health Care: You're number 1 in line and your estimated wait time is 25 minutes.
When you arrive at the clinic and check in, if you arrived after the 15 minute arrival window, then you will be added to the waiting queue as a walk in patient.
Your expected to be seen time will be based on whatever the current estimated wait time is for that clinic, and the text message will state your current position in line and the estimated wait time.
Example:
UI Health Care: We will see you as soon as we can. You're number 4 in line and your estimated wait time is 50 minutes.
Just like the messages you can receive before you reach the clinic, people who have checked in and are in the waiting room may also receive updates if there is a delay that impacts their queue position, or expected be seen time.
These delays wiil also be reflected by the expected to be seen time on the waiting room display board.
Example:
UI Health Care: The clinic is experiencing some delays. You're number 2 in line and your estimated wait time is now 49 minutes.
We want to make sure you are aware of where you are in the waiting queue, especially when you are nearing the top spot. As you move up in the queue, if it has been more than 15 minutes since the last time we sent you a message, you will receive a message alerting you of that progress.
We have that 15 minute window to make sure we are not overwhelming you with texts.
However, once you reach the third spot in the queue, you will always get a message when you progress up from 2, and eventually to the first position.
Example:
UI Health Care: You're now number 3 in line and your estimated wait time is 1 hours 33 minutes. We expect to see you at 2:34 PM.
Urgent Cares and QuickCares
