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Reasons to Visit an Urgent Care Facility Instead of the Emergency Room

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Have you ever needed to visit an emergency room? If you have, it may not be your fondest memory for a variety of reasons. On the one hand, you were likely in a lot of pain from an injury, an illness, a wound, or a disease that was ailing you. In addition, you probably had to wait for an emergency room nurse or an emergency room doctor to see you. The wait probably made the pain worse, and when the medical bill came, it was probably higher than you expected. So, the next time you wonder, ?Where is the nearest emergency room near me?? you should consider your other options, too.
Interested in learning more about other choices for getting the medical care you need in a quick and affordable way? Keep reading for more information to help you make a smarter choice the next time you?re wondering, ?Where is the closest emergency room near me??

Other Ways to Receive Efficient and Affordable Medical Treatment in an Emergency

When you are in a lot of pain from an illness or injury, you don?t have to resort to finding the best or closest emergency room. On the other hand, you do not have to settle for making a regular doctor?s appointment and waiting for that to come around. Instead, you can opt to visit an urgent care center near you to get the treatment you need.
Urgent care centers are a great alternative to the choices many people have been making up until now. When you get sick or injured on the weekend or after hours, you likely end up at the emergency room. You are stuck wondering, ?Where is the closest emergency room near me?? all the while being in pain or sick. When you choose to visit an urgent care facility, generally you do not have to worry about what time of day it is or what day of the week is.
That is because the majority of urgent care facilities are open seven days a week. In fact, 85% of the urgent care centers throughout the country open their doors to patients every single day of the week. That explains why so many people are choosing to visit an urgent care center near them over the emergency room or their regular doctor?s office. The Urgent Care Association of America recently announced that around 3 million people in the United States visit an urgent care facility every single week.
With more than 20,000 doctors specializing in Urgent Care Medicine today, there is plenty of room for this field to continue growing over the years. The more doctors who specialize in this aspect of medicine, the more patients will receive efficient and affordable care when they are injured or sick.

How Urgent Care Facilities Can Help Those in Need

One of the most common illnesses urgent care centers helped with over the years was an upper respiratory condition. Another common procedure that took place at urgent care facilities was wound repair.
If you are every injured, it is important to know that the majority of these centers are able to help with fracture care. Statistics show that around 80% of facilities have the means to help assess and treat fractures. Since more than 25,000 people sprain or fracture their ankle every single day in the United States, it is extremely helpful to have a convenient place to go to for treatment like an urgent care center.
Urgent care centers can also assist with other things from back pain, to chronic conditions, to physical therapy, to common sicknesses like the cold flu.
Have you ever chosen to visit an urgent care facility after thinking, ?Where is the closest emergency room near me?? Let us know in the comments about your experiences at the emergency room versus an urgent care center.

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When it’s Best to Go to Your Doctor, Urgent Care, or ER

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Do you have a significant medical issue and aren’t sure how to proceed in getting treatment?


It’s the type of information that you don’t know that you need to know until you need to know it. When should you wait to be seen by your doctor for medical help? When can it be handled by one of the urgent care locations in your area? When is it best to go the emergency room? Stay tuned, we’re going to give you a simple guide of where to get medical care for any type of health concern:


When to Visit Your Doctor
If you are able to, going to your own doctor for a medical issue is ideal. Your doctor knows your medical history, and will have a hand in any ongoing treatment you need. They probably are in the best position to make decisions regarding your medical treatment plan. However, many of the most common medical treatments aren’t available at a private doctor’s office. Additionally, you should never forgo treatment you need immediately to wait for an appointment to open up with your personal doctor. Here are a few situations where going to a private doctor:

  • The medical treatment you need is not urgent, and you can wait until you are able to be seen by your doctor.
  • You need (non-urgent) medical treatment that will require ongoing participation from a medical professional.
  • You need follow-up care for a previous health issue, even if you were treated at another medical clinic.

When to Visit the Emergency Room
Emergency rooms are designed to treat life threatening issues. They are equipped to handle non-life threatening medical issues, but by going to an emergency room for a medical treatment that could be provided elsewhere, you are tying up ER resources that should be available for saving lives. Also, emergency rooms often cost more for the same medical treatment than you would have to pay at your doctors or urgent care.


Emergency rooms are very important for the following instances:

  • Bleeding profusely
  • Heart attack or stroke symptoms
  • Severe head injuries
  • Compound fractures (broken bones where the bone is protruding from the skin)
  • Other medical emergencies where you believe the vitality of the patient is at risk.

When to Visit Urgent Care Locations
Urgent care locations fill the gap in medical care between what your medical provider offers and what the emergency room is designed for. Getting treatment at an urgent care is in your best interest if you need to be seen before your medical provider can fit you in, you are only able to seek medical treatment after normal business hours or on weekends, or if the medical treatment you require is outside of the scope of what your doctor offers.


Visiting urgent care locations
is typically far less expensive than going to the emergency room; many times, insurance providers treat it the same as visiting your primary care physician. Also, you’ll find the wait times at an urgent care to be shorter than that of the emergency room. Emergency rooms are designed to treat patients on a hierarchy of who needs care more. If you have a broken femur, you’ll be bumped after the patient who has a stab wound, regardless of who came in first. Meanwhile, urgent cares units serve patients on a first-come-first-serve basis. A few good reasons to go to urgent care include:

  • Intravenous fluids. Most primary care physicians are not able to, but urgent cares are able to administer IVs.
  • Fracture care. Urgent care offices are usually able to provide X-rays, bone setting, and casts, unless your bone injury requires surgery.
  • Lab services. If you need blood tests, or urine analysis in order to get a diagnoses and treatment, you can usually receive it onsite at an urgent care, rather than having to go to a separate lab.
  • Prescriptions. When you know you just need a round of antibiotics to treat a minor infection, you may be able to get it in a single visit to an urgent care, rather than having to make a trip to a pharmacy.

Do you have any questions regarding when to visit your doctor, go to urgent care, or the ER?