Things To Consider When Choosing Urgent Care

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What to Look for When Choosing Urgent Care

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• A hospital emergency room is the best place for
  people to go when they have severe chest pains,
  head and neck injuries, and lacerations with
  uncontrolled bleeding. Hospitals are a good
  choice as well when someone feels as though they
  are having a stroke or a heart attack. These
  conditions are considered life-threatening.
• Unfortunately, a great many people seek emergency
  room care when they could have been treated
  elsewhere. Over 130 million people visited an
  emergency room in 2010. Studies show that about
  79 of these people went to the hospital because
  they did not have access to other medical care
  resources. Around 48 of patients went to the
  hospital simply because their doctor's office was
  not open. Hospitals become congested when people
  do not use other services. Urgent care locations
  help to cut down on this congestion. If you want
  to use an Urgent Care Clinic, there are some
  things you need to consider.

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• 1. Consider urgent care locations that are open
  24 hours a day. Some urgent care centers only
  offer services during business hours. This can
  create a hassle for you if you need medical care
  late at night. Also, it can take some time to
  administer IVs and complete tests. If the urgent
  care center has limited hours, medical care may
  not be completed before the center closes.
  Contact urgent care centers directly to ask about
  hours of operation.

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• 2. Look for urgent care locations that take your
  health insurance. Urgent care centers are like
  hospitals, and accept a wide variety of insurance
  providers. Several types of insurance may not be
  accepted though. Contact your insurance company
  directly or speak with urgent care centers to see
  if insurance is accepted. Keep in mind that you
  may be charged the same copay or fee as you would
  if you went to the emergency room. Some insurance
  companies have been adding cheaper copays for
  urgent care visits, however, so you may actually
  save yourself some money by skipping the
  emergency room.

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• 3. Think about visiting an urgent care center
  that is managed by a physician. Most states
  require emergency room care facilities to operate
  under the supervision of a physician at all
  times. This means that the vast majority of the
  9,000 urgent care centers in the United States
  have at least one physician on staff. Along with
  physicians, nurses, x-ray technicians, and nurse
  practitioners are available to provide care. Some
  urgent care facilities provide dental emergency
  care and other specialty services. This means
  that a dentist, respiratory specialist, or
  pulmonologist may be available.

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• When you opt for an urgent care center to treat a
  sprain, strain, upper respiratory infection,
  fracture or other minor illness or injury, you
  not only save yourself time and money, but you
  will also be freeing up the resources at an
  emergency room, so that those with
  life-threatening conditions can get the help they
  need.