Have you cut yourself or pulled a muscle, but don’t know if you should go to the emergency room or urgent care? You may have hurt yourself, but feel that the emergency room would be too much of a hassle. Fortunately, urgent care centers care for people who have non-emergency medical situations.
After you have determined if your wound or pain is a minor pain for a nearby urgent care center, then you must get ready for your visit. Whatever decision you make with being cared for, making sure what kind of care you need is important.
The Meaning of Urgent Care
For many people, when they think about urgent care, they may believe any ailment can be treated there. However, that is not the case. It is a place where certified professionals take care of those who do not need the medical attention that is required by an emergency room staff. Many urgent care centers even have pediatric services available for babies and children. This is an additional convenience for parents whose children need medical care. Family visits and care for sick children are both services you can get at urgent care. For many who do not have health insurance to cover the needs of themselves or their children, it is a clinic to go to when professional help is needed. Urgent care centers are also places to go for those who may not live that close to a hospital and know that their injury or illness does not require emergency care.
Most Common Illnesses or Injuries in Urgent Care
With understaffed and overburdened local hospitals, urgent care facilities see patients year round about all kinds of injuries and illnesses as long as they are not life-threatening. Some common injuries and illnesses seen by the professionals in urgent care facilities include fractures, whiplash, injuries from a fall or a car accident, sprains, burns, flu, ear infection, mono, strep throat, urinary tract infections, and pink eye. Urgent care professionals also take care of patients with head lice and allergies as well as those with common colds or cuts and lacerations.
If you need to figure out which medical facility would be best for your children and do not know if taking them to the hospital is feasible, then an urgent care facility would be the best place to try first. While you may have never thought about visiting a urgent health care for yourself or for your family, for many it is just as reliable a medical care facility as your local hospital. So plan your next visit for a physical or a medical issue at your local urgent care facility.
