Urgent care centers have become increasingly popular over the years with one in five facilities seeing as many as 450 patients per week. Many people are realizing that sometimes going to the urgent care is a better choice for a number of reasons. When a minor issue arises which requires immediate care, but you aren’t able to get to the doctor, an urgent care center is the next best option. Read below to see other advantages of choosing an urgent care center over an emergency room.

Walk-In Issues


One main benefit of choosing urgent care for kids is that you do not need an appointment. An urgent care clinic sees patients on a walk-in basis. Sometimes your child’s doctor is not able to see them immediately or make a quick appointment for them. When you face this problem an urgent care center is a faster option for getting your child treated promptly and correctly.

Less Waiting

When you need urgent care for kids and you go the emergency room you prepare to wait for hours in order to be seen and treated. Urgent care centers are not the same. Patients are seen, diagnosed and released much faster than those visiting the emergency room. Many patients seen at an urgent care facility wait 15 minutes or less to see a physician. These wait times are comparable to that of a doctor’s office and make urgent care facilities much more popular compared with the emergency room.

Flexibility

Another common problem that parents run into with children, is that they don’t have set hours for injuries or illnesses. This means sometimes you child may get injured or sick after the doctor’s office has already closed. When this happens urgent care for kids is needed, but many parents do not want to sit for hours in the emergency department waiting for care. This is where urgent care clinics become a valuable option for parents. The hours of urgent care clinics are different from the doctor’s office, to allow parents more flexibility. Many urgent care centers are open later than the doctor’s office, and offer weekend hours as well.

Price

Parents who have insurance for their children quickly realize the intense cost associated with proper care. Co pays for urgent care centers are significantly lower than the co pays for the emergency room. When getting urgent care for kids parents rarely think about price, but when the bill comes in the mail you will be happy that you chose an urgent care facility over the nearest emergency room facility.


One Stop

Many parents believe urgent care for kids means going to the emergency room because of the services available there. Urgent care facilities have many of the same services in one stop without the wait you will endure at the emergency room. Urgent care facilities have x-ray machines for sudden injuries you fear may be bone breaks. Approximately 80% of urgent care facilities are equipped to provide immediate fracture care to patients. They offer lab testing for issues requiring blood to be drawn. They also offer services such as flu shots and casting broken bones.


One main rule of thumb to remember is that if you need urgent care for kids that is not life threatening then an urgent care center can help. If you child needs life threatening medical care than the emergency room is the place to go. Urgent care centers are available for mild to moderate problems and those requiring urgent care. You will seen by a physician who can properly diagnose and treat your or your child’s issues at a fraction of the cost.