Is there an affordable option to the doctor’s office and emergency services? In the U.S., urgent care has been building up momentum as a popular alternative to other medical services. If you aren’t familiar with urgent care clinics, now is the time to learn more. Sooner or later, you are likely to find yourself in the position of potentially requiring urgent care services. So what do they offer?
Urgent care facilities are intended to fill several gaps. Time, money, and scheduling are the three main advantages of the convenient care that urgent care centers provide. It is not a substitute for all types of patient care. The typical urgent care facility will be able to treat common but non-life threatening ailments, such as sore throat, broken bones, lacerations, digestive problems, and the flu. If someone has a serious condition, such as heart palpitations or heavy blood loss, the emergency room is still the appropriate choice.
Most doctor’s offices and urgent care centers now work together so that patients can use either one in case of routine checkups and last-minute visits for unexpected illnesses. While a doctor’s office might also be able to treat a broken bone, the U.S. is currently experiencing a shortage of primary care doctors. Consequently, office clinics frequently have waiting lists of several weeks, or even months.
Years ago, a patient would have had no other choice than to head to the emergency room even if the situation wasn’t truly an emergency. Though the emergency room can adequately handle this type of care, the bills people receive were often disproportionate to what they needed one. There are many stories of people pay hundreds, and even thousands of dollars, for three to four stitches. On average, urgent care visits end up costing 10% of ER visits.
The final advantage of an urgent convenient care center is wait time. For people with busy lifestyles — whether it’s working two jobs, taking care of kids, or just being tired after a 10 hour day — it’s hard to find time to wait for two hours so that a cut can be looked at. Urgent cares accept walk-ins, and nationwide, 60% of patients end up waiting 15 minutes or less to be seen. Only a small percentage of patients ever have to wait longer than an hour. This can be an important benefit for many people who feel pressed for time.
There’s a reason urgent care facilities are known as “convenient care.” Would you visit one? Let us know in the comments. Read more blogs like this: doctorsexpressnewark.com