MiCare provides alternate way to communicate with health clinic Published May 14, 2014 By Senior Airman Tristin English 375th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. -- Many patients are put on hold after calling the appointment hotline, sometimes waiting for upwards of 20 to 30 minutes before an appointment is booked. The drive to the medical facility is short, but when you get there it's crowded. After arriving, patients could have a wait time of 10 minutes or it could be as long as an hour or two before being seen by a physician. MiCare is a program that relieves the stress and hassle of waiting on the phone just to make an appointment. It also cuts down on wait time in the waiting room. Scott AFB has had MiCare around for a year and a half. Every patient who registers can receive emails and cell phone alerts, allowing them to receive messages about medical closures, immunizations, when school physicals are happening, or even when the clinic is closed due to inclement weather. MiCare also provides an opportunity for a patient to communicate with a provider on a secure network about non-urgent healthcare concerns. "The nicest thing about MiCare is that patients essentially have direct access to me, my nurse, or one of my techs," said Capt. Daniel Dierfeldt, Family Medicine Resident. "It eliminates phone-tag, and the endless rings of the phone here at our clinic. These messages are initially screened by our techs, and they take care of it if it is a problem they can handle. If they need to push it up to the doc or nurse they have that option as well. It reduces the work load on me." The civilian sector is also moving toward offering more patient portals since this service will assist their beneficiaries to make smart non-urgent care decisions rather than sitting in a waiting room or going to an urgent care facility. "MiCare also helps clinics," said Capt. Angel Vargas, Group Practice manager, "Why wait for a phone call after getting immunizations or x-rays when you can get a message from MiCare telling you your results are normal?" A recent secure messaging satisfaction survey demonstrated that 97 percent of more than 13,000 survey respondents were satisfied with their secure messaging transaction, and more than 86 percent agreed it helped them avoid a trip to an emergency room or a Medical Training Facility for a medical problem. Overall, Airmen, their families and beneficiaries using MiCare can expect a decrease in trips to the MTF and more personal communication with their healthcare team. To find out more about MiCare visit www.afms.af.mil/MiCare or ask your healthcare team during your next visit or register at www.relayhealth.com.