Studying Your Urgent Care Options

You're enjoying a weekend getaway and wake up in your hotel room with a sore throat and high fever. You attend an out of town wedding and sprain your ankle on the dance floor. You're about to leave Disney and your child complains of ear pain. Where should you go for treatment?

Urgent care centers deliver ambulatory care in facilities outside of the hospital. They see people on a walk-in basis without an appointment. They are appropriate for people with an injury or illness that requires immediate care but is not necessarily serious enough to warrant an emergency room visit. Urgent care centers are not open 24 hours a day but their hours are more extended than a primary care physician and most have weekends and evenings hours.

Urgent care centers treat many problems generally covered in primary care physician's offices and also offer services that are generally not available such as X-rays. Some have minor trauma rooms to treat lacerations. They cost less than an emergency room visit and usually you can get in and out in less time.

Walk-in clinics, aka retail health clinics, provide a lower level of medical treatment but still may be effective depending on your needs. They are most often found in strip malls, drugstores and mega stores. Although not popular locally yet, Kiplinger reports they will experience brisk growth and expansion over the next few years. Both CVS and Walgreens have purchased retail clinic chains and have placed them in their stores in various parts of the country, and Wal-Mart is contracting with hospitals to open in-store clinics.

Walk-in clinics are generally open seven days a week and don't require an appointment. They are usually staffed by nurse practitioners or physician assistants. You will often find a price board for various services outside the clinic so you know the charges before you are seen. The clinics treat about 25 to 30 common ailments such as cold and flu, sinus, ear and bladder infections, pink eye, allergies, minor burns and rashes, sore throat and sprains. Some provide preventive care such as health screenings and vaccinations.

Clearly, if you are very sick you should see your doctor (if available), or go to an emergency room. Chest pain, abdominal pain, trouble breathing, high fever, deep tissue damage, acute weakness, severe burns and questionable broken bones are just some of the symptoms that probably warrant an emergency room visit. But, if it's less serious you might try an alternative.

Consider your symptoms and organize your medical plan when choosing what type of clinic to go to:

Urgent Care Centers can address more serious issues, have physicians to treat you, and most likely have X-ray facilities.

*Retail health clinics treat a limited number of common conditions.

*Check with your health insurer regarding coverage for urgent care and clinics.

*Clinics will not have your medical history so it is imperative that you can accurately articulate "the highlights" and detail any currently taken medications.

The American Academy of Pediatrics opposes the use of retail clinics as an ongoing source of medical care for children due to the inability to ensure continuity of care.