If you need medical attention fast, you go straight to the emergency room, right? Well, not necessarily. Urgent care facilities are a great emergency room alternatives and might be right for your medical problem.
Featuring easy walk in care, urgent care centers provide medical services for conditions that are not serious enough for an emergency room visit, but still require immediate attention. Many patients choose to find urgent care centers over the emergency room for minor injuries and illnesses because of shorter wait times and lower costs for treatment.
In a study performed by the Center for Disease Control (CDC), almost half (48 percent ) of adult patients sought attention at an emergency room because their physicians’ offices were closed. Urgent care facilities act as an intermediate level of after hours urgent care between the ER and a physician.
Urgent care facilities represent a fast growing facet of the American healthcare system. With often clogged emergency rooms, 24 hr urgent care is always in high demand. With more and more patients seeking treatment at urgent care facilities, emergency rooms are freed up to focus on more severe injuries and illnesses.
In early 2009, the Urgent Care Association of America established the Certified Urgent Care Center designation to help people in need of rapid treatment.
To be sure you are going to get the cheapest and fastest after hours treatment for your minor medical issues be sure to look up your certified local urgent care facilities. For more, read this link. Read this website for more information.