It?s important to know which medical facility treats emergency situations. You will find an urgent care center can treat many ailments while life threatening situations should be handled at the emergency room. In this post, you will learn about the differences between an emergency room and an urgent care center. Understanding these differences will help you know what to do when an emergency occurs.
Urgency of Medical Situation
The most important thing to consider when determining which medical treatment facility to visit is your condition. If you have a stuffy nose and slight fever, it?s advisable to visit an urgent care center. However, a victim of a severe wreck would likely have life threatening injuries that require the quick treatment of emergency care services.
A car accident is the only type of pressing medical issue treated in at emergency rooms. One study finds that someone has a heart attack every 34 seconds in the United States. Many people are rushed into the emergency room because they are experiencing heart attack related symptoms.
Medical Equipment Needed for Possible Procedure
An urgent care center will have equipment that is able to treat certain ailments. Someone who is experiencing the flu will receive a prescription for medication from an urgent care physician. More serious medical matters may require immediate surgery. Someone who is experiencing extremely painful symptoms may find that medicine doesn?t improve matters.
It?s likely that this person would need a surgery to immediately fix an issue. A person with a history of heart issues may need a procedure that removes the blockage. Almost 610,000 people pass away from heart disease each year in the United States. Hospitals have access to surgeons who are able to help perform critical heart related surgeries. Someone who is in need of a surgery can not have this taken care of at an average urgent care center.
Staff Available at Either Location
An urgent care center will likely have physicians available to see patients. An emergency room has qualified physicians available. An emergency clinic will have entire surgical teams available to perform emergency procedures. Visitors at an urgent care center requiring immediate surgery will need to be referred to an emergency room.
One study finds that were almost four million births in the United States throughout 2015. An expecting mother rushing into an urgent care center will need to go to the emergency room. Emergency services will have specialized maternity surgeons to help deliver a baby. Someone needing an orthopedic surgeon for a procedure is not advised to visit an urgent care center. You will likely need to visit a local orthopedic specialist to schedule a consultation visit.
In summary, there are similarities and differences between an emergency room and urgent care center. Both of these facilities are able to treat a wide variety of medical situations. However, life threatening situations need to be taken care of at an emergency room. An urgent care center should be visited when you have more run of the mill issues including sprains, colds, and non life threatening matters.