Lowell General Hospital Opening Tewksbury Urgent Care Center

TEWKSBURY, MA -- Lowell general Hospital broke ground on an urgent care facility on Route 38 in Tewksbury. The facility comes as the market demand for urgent care facilities increases and as Tewksbury works to bring more commercial development to its main business corridor. The facility, which will offer primary care services and have a lab and X-ray equipment, could be open as early as next fall.

"It's been vacant land for a number of years, so it's nice to have something that's creating jobs, creating great services and revenue for the town," Board of Selectmen Chairman Mark Kratman told the Lowell Sun, which first reported this story.

Urgent care facilities have been popping up in communities across the country in recent years to bridge the gap between regular doctor's office visits and emergency room trips. The centers are designed to handle non-life threatening ailments when a patient's regular doctor is on vacation or can offer a last-minute appointment.

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Patch file photo.

Dave Copeland can be reached at dave.copeland@patch.com or by calling 617-433-7851. Follow him on Twitter (@CopeWrites) and Facebook (/copewrites).