WEST MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- Petro Stopping Centers, El Paso, Texas, and Professional Driver's Medical Depots (PDMD), Knoxville, Tenn., celebrated the opening of their new West Memphis, Tenn., clinic with a grand opening celebration late last week. PDMD is working to establish a system of healthcare facilities and networks to make healthcare accessible to professional drivers across the country.
The West Memphis clinic, located at the Petro Stopping Center at I-40, Exit 280 and I-55, Exit 5, is the second of a network of more than 60 planned facilities to [image-nocss] serve drivers across the country. PDMD opened its first facility and corporate headquarters at the Knoxville Petro Stopping Center in January. Sites currently under construction include: Atlanta; Peru, lll.; El Paso; Shreveport, La.; and Mebane, N.C.
By bringing healthcare facilities to travel centers, America's professional drivers will have access to services that were previously unavailable. Our research has shown us that 56% of professional drivers had difficulty utilizing healthcare services at home, 47% lack a regular healthcare provider and 32% were unable to receive needed healthcare within the last year, said Dr. John McElligott, chairman and CEO of PDMD, Knoxville, Tenn. That's why these facilities are so crucial to the well-being of the trucking industry, which impacts countless other industries.
The clinics will provide services including DOT physicals; drug screening; breath alcohol testing; work related injuries and personal illness; prescription refills; flu shots; pneumonia vaccines just to name a few. More importantly is the nationwide hospital network, which allows fast track emergency evaluations, diagnostics and lab screening. This network of hospitals, like Parkwest Medical Center and Crittenden Regional Hospital, will offer professional drivers access to services and doctors impossible to obtain until now, the company said.
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