Providence Central Point Medical Plaza in Central Point has expanded hours for its urgent care clinic.

Providence Central Point Urgent Care announced expanded clinic hours last week and is now open 7 a.m. to 6:45 p.m. weekdays and weekends.

The change means there are now Providence urgent care clinics open seven days a week in both Medford and Central Point.

Providence officials say the extra hours will better meet growing community demand.

A number of long-running urgent care sites, including one adjacent to Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center in Medford, shuttered in recent years.

Providence Central Point Urgent Care is at 870 S. Front St., Suite 200. Providence Stewart Meadows Urgent Care is at 70 Bower Drive in Medford. It opened in in January 2018.

Urgent care clinics are a cost-effective way for patients to obtain medical care for issues that require immediate attention but are not life-threatening. The clinics free up resources in hospital emergency rooms for more serious needs.

Luke Amuchastegui, a physician associate at the Central Point clinic, said demand for urgent care has gone up since 2020.

“Local demand for urgent care has always been high and increased during the COVID pandemic. That, combined with nationwide health care staffing shortages, led us to concentrate our efforts on Stewart Meadows, our larger clinic, during weekends,” Amuchastegui said in an email.

“Staffing shortages and other challenges, unfortunately, led to the closure of urgent care clinics operated by other health organizations in the valley, compounding the need for more urgent care access. We are thankful to have remained operational throughout the pandemic and, thanks to Providence’s recent recruitment efforts, are able to expand access through our Central Point office on the weekends.”