Sarah Bush Lincoln is opening a Walk-In Clinic and a primary care office in its SBL Effingham Clinic at 905 N. Maple Ave., Effingham, in January.
The Walk-In Clinic will be staffed by Family Physician Douglas Kabbes, MD, a life-long resident of Effingham. It will be open from 10 am to 8 pm, Monday through Friday. The Walk-In Clinic is expected to open in mid-January. Its hours will be extended as its use warrants it.
Dr. Kabbes worked for many years in Emergency Medicine, caring for a wide array of acute issues and illnesses.
A walk-in clinic cares for people of all ages who have minor medical problems including colds, sore throats, ear infections, cuts, sprains and strains. It also offers diagnostic services such as X-ray and simple blood and urine tests. It is not intended to treat chronic conditions or serious medical conditions. Babies must be at least three months old without a fever or six months old with a fever to receive care at the clinic. People are treated on a first-come, first-served basis. Anyone with life threatening injury or illness like shortness of breath, and chest pains should go to the nearest emergency department.
People may check www.sarahbush.org to check Walk-In Clinic wait times. The Effingham Walk-In Clinic phone number will be 217 540-6123. The cost of a walk-in clinic visit is approximately the same as a physician office visit. Sarah Bush Lincoln also has walk-in clinics in Mattoon, Charleston and Tuscola.
Dr. Kabbes has been caring for people at the Sarah Bush Lincoln Family Medical Center in Mattoon for the last year. He will transition to the Effingham Walk-In Clinic shortly after Illinois licensure comes for an internal medicine physician who has been recruited to care for his patients.
Effingham resident Louis Schwing, IV, MD, is opening an internal medicine practice at the same clinic on January 2.
Dr. Schwing will care for people age 16 and older. Dr. Schwing began his career as an internal medicine physician and gained vast experience as a hospitalist at HSHS St. Anthony and at Sarah Bush Lincoln. He said he is excited getting back to a medical practice where he can build long-term relationships with his patients.
“I think I’m a good listener and I spend a fair amount of time with patients to get to know their stories and to put together their problems,” Dr. Schwing said. “It’s amazing what people will open up and tell you if you have a good connection and they feel comfortable.”
“It’s certainly not a one-way conversation,” he added. “Patients have a voice in the way their treatment options are pursued. I think of myself as a consultant.”
To make an appointment with Dr. Schwing, call 217 540-6122.
The SBL Effingham Clinic was built in 2009 and it houses an ENT practice staffed by Otolaryngologists Michael Smith, MD, Charly Nguyen, MD, and Lori Cudone, MD; a reference laboratory and Lincolnland Home Care and Hospice worksites. A portion of the building was not finished out immediately with the idea that at some point Sarah Bush Lincoln would add specialty care. Last year it planned to put orthopedics in the space until Sarah Bush Lincoln purchased the Bonutti Clinic.
Sarah Bush Lincoln Vice President Practice Management Greg Taylor said, “Dr. Schwing and Dr. Kabbes are both exceptional physicians with excellent reputations in the community. We’re pleased that both were happy to return to Effingham to provide care to their friends and neighbors in their hometown community.”