Did you know that, each year, people make at least 110 million separate trips to the ER? The emergency room is aptly named, and it is intended for emergencies only. More and more people are abusing the system, and going to the ER when traditional doctors’ offices are closed, or have limited appointments. Urgent health care centers are one of several emergency room alternatives. Why should you skip the emergency room, and seek urgent care?
Twenty Four Hour Care
Most urgent care centers offer hours all day, and all night. Urgent care facilities that cannot stay open 24 hours a day still offer late night hours, and are likely to be open on holidays and weekends. Walk in doctors can stand in for primary care physicians when there are no appointments available, or they can treat patients in the event of a non-life threatening emergency. Local urgent care centers are not a permanent solution, and most will recommend that patients follow up, or get regular treatment from, their primary care doctor.
Convenience
Overcrowding, whether in emergency rooms or doctors’ offices, means long wait times and less time with the doctor. Urgent care centers and emergency room alternatives help prevent crowds, and keep doctors free to spend as much time as necessary with patients. Plus, these clinics are just as capable of treating injuries and ailments, and often see patients for lacerations, burns, fractures and sprains, digestive problems, and upper respiratory symptoms. The best part? Some urgent care clinics offer prescription dispensing right on site, meaning that you can walk away with your medication without even leaving the building.
Emergency rooms are too crowded, and often with people who have little need to be there. Prevent ER crowding, and keep the ER open for those who truly need it, by seeking convenient, 24 hour urgent health care.
this is something that i strongly believe in. i know some friends and relatives who will treat the emergency room as an after hours alternative, and i think it’s kind of shameful. For one thing, it’s expensive and, for another, some people NEED to be there!
the last time i went to the emergency room, I must have waited hours. I wasn’t too certain of the severity of my symptoms (rapid heart rate), but luckily they were able to curtail it without too much effort. Had I needed immediate care, they seemed too busy for it.
the last time i went to the emergency room, I must have waited hours. I wasn’t too certain of the severity of my symptoms (rapid heart rate), but luckily they were able to curtail it without too much effort. Had I needed immediate care, they seemed too busy for it.