Merriment abounded on Saturday in the parking lot adjacent to Doctors Express as staff, several community organizations and Santee residents took in the festivities. There were booths featuring face painting, balloon animals, free soda, popcorn and chips, and performances by Santana High School band and BIBAK San Diego, a Northern Filipino ethnic dance group.

Amid the event's celebratory nature, however, was the more serious message that Santee is now the first in California and sixteenth in the nation to host a franchise urgent care clinic.

"I was looking for pockets that were underserved," said Paul Arvanitis, managing owner of Santee's Doctors Express on Mission Gorge Road. Another advantage of the Santee location is it is on the corner of a busy intersection and is within walking distance of Walgreens.

Feedback from the medical community has been positive, said Arvanitis. It helps that Arvanitis and his team assured primary care managers that Doctors Express is not in competition with them, but rather wants to serve a supportive role.

Medical director and staff physician Luzviminda Saidro confirmed Arvanitis's non-competition outlook. "This is to supplement family care offices. Of course, emergency issues should be taken to the emergency room," said Saidro.

Urgent care falls somewhere between family care and emergency room services. Patients can see Doctors Express for subtle medical issues, but the office will not handle life-threatening health problems, such as heart attack or stroke. Additionally, Doctors Express offers a variety of physicals for specific needs, such as employment, sports and school requirements.

There are five doctors on staff at Doctors Express with certified medical assistants performing double duty as front desk receptionists and x-ray technicians. Nurses will be hired when patient volume hits critical mass, according to Arvanitis. Until then, the current staff should be sufficient.

"It's a very efficient operation," said Arvanitis, who has two decades of experience in health care administration. His last position was with the U.S. Navy as a medical service corps officer. "It allows us to keep the costs down."

Having practiced family care for several years, Saidro said one of the biggest differences between a family practice and urgent care is that a patient needn't wait for months to see an urgent care doctor. And when it comes to a sore throat or bad cold, "do you want to wait three weeks to be seen?" asked Saidro.

Now that Obamacare is providing health insurance for more people, there is a more pressing need for medical services outside the usual suspects, according to Saidro.

Community response has been encouraging, said Arvanitis, who added that residents from Santee's surrounding neighborhoods, such as Mission Valley, Alpine, El Cajon and Lakeside, have also expressed interest. "With 32 million more Americans being inducted into the health care system, I would expect emergency rooms to get busier," said Arvanitis.

If all goes as planned, Arvanitis plans to open three to five more urgent care facilities. "We're thrilled to be here," Arvanitis said. "We're thrilled to be of service to the citizens of Santee."

Doctors Express will be open seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday.