Just Moved? Here’s Your Family Health Care Checklist
| 3 min read
New home, new town, new you! A lot goes into moving to a new home. Booking a moving truck, enrolling the kids at a new school, and getting addresses changed are just the beginning. One of the other important tasks to take care of when you move is to have a plan of action for your family’s health care.
There’s never a convenient time to get sick or injured during the big move. Sometimes these things happen after hours or while packing up over the weekend, or before you’ve even had a chance to see what services are in the area. Don’t sweat it – your health care moving checklist comes without headaches (or breaking the bank)!
- Sign up for Blue Cross Online Visits for on-the-go care: In the middle of all the (organized) chaos, it may be near impossible to line up your schedule with that of your primary care doctor. Minor burns, cuts, scrapes, and allergy flare-ups can slow the entire family down. That’s where Blue Cross Online VisitsSM can help! Using your smartphone, tablet or computer, you can video chat with a U.S. board-certified doctor or therapist for sound medical help, and fast—average appointment times are only 10 minutes for medical care sessions. You can even send a visit summary to your primary doctor so they are up to speed for your next in-person visit. Sign up or log in at bcbsmonlinevisits.com to find available doctors.
- Map out the closest urgent care center and directions for getting there: If your symptoms are a little more complicated and you’ve yet to find the family’s new doctors, urgent care centers can provide convenient, in-person care. Evening and weekend hours means you can get professional attention before symptoms get too bad, and some centers may have many of the same X-ray machines and other laboratory equipment that you would find at a hospital. Urgent care centers aren’t a replacement for the emergency room, but are a viable option for non-emergency situations. Find the nearest one to you.
- Save the Blue Cross 24-Hour Nurse Line number to your phone: If a loved one is experiencing sudden sickness on the highway or late at night, it’s natural to want immediate answers. Registered nurses are available anytime, anywhere in the U.S. via the 24/7 Nurse Line. A free service for Blue Cross and BCN members, it can get you pointed in the right direction for care and recommend additional treatment. Having that peace of mind will make the whole moving experience a lot smoother.
- Get to know your friendly neighborhood retail health clinics: No matter where you are in Michigan, there may be a health clinic like those found in drug store chains near your work or home. Not only can you pick up your prescriptions at these locations — you can also talk with a physician’s assistant or certified nurse practitioner. Visits are on a walk-in basis.
- Find your family doctor: After you’ve settled into your new home, it’s time to find a new doctor. Simply log in to your Blue Cross member account to find a doctor near you.
Remember: Your primary care doctor should always be your first choice for diagnosis and treatment, as they know your family’s medical history and can coordinate all care. They can recommend you to specialists if need be, and often offer additional services such as labs.
Photo credit: Solis Images
