Centegra opens offices in Huntley

There's a new clinic in town.

Centegra Health System opened it's long-awaited Health Center in Huntley this month, filling a need, its officials say, for medical services in Huntley, Algonquin and Lake in the Hills.

"We want to focus on these communities first," said Nikolas Antoniou, a family doctor who works in immediate care at the health center.

A companion building, Centegra's Health Bridge Fitness Center, is slated to open in October with workout facilities, rehabilitation and physical therapy.

Centegra is still considering long-term plans for the remaining 70 acres of its Huntley campus, but officials have said they have no immediate plans to build a hospital on the site.

The immediate care facility, located at Algonquin and Haligus roads, has been open since last week, serving patients on a walk-in basis.

In that time, the clinic has seen about 15 patients a day, including a woman whose foot was run over by her son-in-law, as well as common medical issues like cuts, ear infections and fractures.

"We see the whole gamut," Antoniou said.

Anyone on an accepted health insurance plan can walk in to the clinic. The uninsured can pay out of pocket.

"We don't turn anybody down," said Nelda Daniel, practice lead for immediate care. "We take a look at them and make sure they're safe."

The health center also houses doctor's offices, a diagnostics lab and an imaging center with high-resolution MRI technology enabling technicians to spot problems less powerful MRI machines can miss.

But employees at the health center said the best part of the new facility is the proximity of doctors, lab technicians and imaging specialists.

"Here, you kind of work together as a team," lab technician Mary Knaack said.