This January, UI Health Care began operations in one new clinic and reorganized another: the Diagnostic and Acute Care Clinics, located in the Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center (HCCC). Led by Soorih Shaikh, MBBS, MRCPi, MPH, the aim of these clinics is to reduce delays and increase quality in caring for people with cancer.
The Diagnostic Clinic can see people referred by their primary care provider (PCP) for any suspicion of cancer. This clinic can help people get their work-ups more quickly and, if a diagnosis of cancer is discovered, they can be seen by a specialist more quickly to start treatment.
The goal of the Acute Care Clinic is to see people who may need urgent care but would otherwise face long wait times in the Emergency Department. It allows for immediate management of the symptoms and aims to prevent potential delays and unnecessary complications or hospital admissions.
Shaikh hopes that the combination of these two services will improve the quality of care available to people with serious conditions. He also acknowledges that it provides benefits to clinicians as well. “The teaching opportunities, research, and well-integrated system of all of this helps build a professional career, not only for medical students, residents, but for faculty as well,” Shaikh said.
Of the HCCC’s support in launching these services and easing barriers to implementation, Shaikh said, “The institute is very supportive.”
Using that support as a springboard, several departments and providers have contributed to the operation of the new clinics. Shaikh, as the specialized internist, staffs and coordinates the clinics along with one designated Advanced Practice Provider (APP) and one nurse. He says he hopes to continue improving the flow of outpatient encounters as they establish a relationship with other services.
Shaikh said, “Right now, if a patient is observed showing any symptoms [of any type of cancer], they have to go through their PCP. Sometimes the PCP sends them to the Emergency Department for a work-up. There’s a long delay if they end up ordering things like an X-ray or CT scans. Once they see something, then they will refer them for biopsy to another institute, so normally it takes three to four weeks.”
He emphasized that, with the use of the Diagnostic Clinic, patients don’t have to undergo this anxiety-inducing wait, and ensures a more timely diagnosis.
“Within two weeks’ time, or 10 working days, we can have a diagnosis and refer patients to our oncology group for treatment.” He said this is a common problem, especially in community practices. “We are trying to minimize this timeline within days instead of months.”
The Acute Care Clinic also aims to minimize waiting times for certain procedures, with a faster turnaround on results. “We will have some help from Radiology if we need quick radiological services. Sometimes we’ll need biopsies, so we have a procedure clinic that will be helpful. Those things will be very handy,” Shaikh said.
Shaikh joined the UI Health Care team at the end of 2023. After completing medical training in Pakistan, Ireland, and Pittsburgh, PA, he has settled in Iowa City as a hematologist-oncologist, in part to be nearer to family, and in part because he was drawn to UI Health Care’s comprehensive care programs and academic excellence.
His experience organizing these new clinics have borne his expectations out. The new clinics employ a multidisciplinary approach to ensure prompt and efficient services.
“You are helping a lot more [patients] and improving their quality of life, prolonging their life and improving care with early diagnosis and treatment,” Shaikh said.