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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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Five Tips for Chronic Back Pain Sufferers

When your back randomly started hurting, you may need to see a chiropractor for chiropractic care. There are many different types of back pain that can appear in different areas of your back. You may have early morning lower back pain, and this may be sciatica. Sciatica is when the sciatic nerve becomes inflamed and causes pain in the lower back as well as other areas. A chiropractor can help with this problem.

If you have inflamed back pain, there are a number of causes that could be behind it. To find out what is wrong with it, you can go to your regular doctor or a chiropractor. Oftentimes, doctors will refer their patients to a chiropractor because they are unable to help with back pain. A chiropractor has a number of different therapies that can be used to help relieve the pain. They can also help with knee pain and back pain.

A chiropractor can engage in manual adjustments of your spine, and this sometimes eases the pain that patients have. They may also apply massage therapy to the area to help with pain and stiffness in your back. Some chiropractors also do acupuncture to make people feel better.

Emergency care

Up to 69% of Americans say that low back pain affects their day to day lives. If you deal with chronic back pain on a daily basis, you are not alone. While back pain diagnosis is difficult and there is no guaranteed successful treatment currently available, there are methods that are useful in dealing with the chronic pain. If you are no stranger to chronic back pain, consider adding any of these pain relieving methods into your current health plan.

See a physician

At least 40% of people suffering from long term low back pain do not see a doctor or physical therapist. Some patients might not have health insurance and worry about the high costs of medical care. Others do not want to go through the long and frustrating process of diagnosing low back pain. Additionally, without any guaranteed treatments available, some see seeking medical care as pointless. However, seeing a physician is important in at least ruling out more severe of causes. A physician can also recommend treatments that can reduce pain, such as physical therapy. Your physician can also refer you to top doctors that deal with chronic back pain.

Be active

When you are in pain, the last thing you want to do is be active. But, remaining active, despite lower back pains is important. It keeps the nearby muscles toned and can prevent a worsening of the injury. Regular exercise also keeps excess weight off of the body, which can exacerbate an already problematic back. Some minor exercise restrictions might need to be made for safe exercise, but some amount is important. Working with a physician or physical therapist can help the patients create an exercise routine that they can complete, without injuring themselves any worse.

Know when an emergency is present

When you deal with chronic pain for many months, or years, you somewhat get used to the pain. Although the pain might not get any easier, you are not tempted to run to the emergency department or urgent care center with each new pain. Falling into this sense of comfort can be dangerous though. While the majority of back pains are mechanical, some are due to life threatening conditions. For example, if you lose complete control of your bowels or movement ability, emergency medical care is needed. It is important to not fall into this comfort pattern and know when urgent care is needed.

Avoid surgery until absolutely necessary

Some physicians are quick to push surgery as a treatment. However, if the diagnosis is incorrect or the surgery is not completed properly, it is unlikely to fix the problem. Always do your research when considering surgery, especially on the back. A study published in World Neurosurgery found that, among 96 patients treated for Degenerative Disc Disease (DDD), there were no significant differences in outcomes between the 53 that were treated with lumbar fusion and the 43 who chose to pursue nonoperative treatment (i.e. physical therapy). Surgery is not always a permanent solution.

Be aware of pain triggers

Beginning to understand your pain can also help you to reduce it. If you know the events and actions that tend to increase your pain, you can begin to avoid these activities. If you experience a pain trigger, you know to visit the local after hours urgent care center for treatment. While you might not be able to avoid every single activity associated with back pains, you can reduce the more serious ones. Anyone that deals with chronic pain know how much of a difference a single day of reduced pain can make.

Dealing with chronic pain can be frustrating, tiresome, and affect your daily life. If you deal with chronic back pain, you might often feel like there is no cure. For most conditions, there isn?t a cure, but you can take steps to reduce your pain and improve your overall condition. You can also avoid emergencies by becoming familiar with your local urgent care center location.