Summer should be a time of carefree fun and enjoyment. The reality is, however, that there are many times when the fun of summer results in an illness or an injury that requires timely primary medical care. And while there are some instances that warrant a trip to the emergency room, it is important that health consumers make wise choices about the health care that they request. Making the decision to go to an affordable and convenient walk in health clinic when you are looking for timely primary medical care can save you thousands of dollars when compared to the expense of a hospital emergency room.
Getting effective treatment is the most important thing if you are ill or injured, but it is important to remember that you do not always have to get this care in a hospital emergency room or a traditional family physician’s office. In fact, in many cases it makes more sense to get the reliable care that you need at an affordable and convenient urgent care clinic. With limited weight times to see qualified doctors and nurses, in fact, you may find yourself turning to this affordable option for a number of your appointments. From flu shots to x-rays and from middle of the night health concerns to breathing treatments, a walk in clinic is often your best option.
Obviously, one of the greatest advantage of going to a walk in clinic is the convenience. Without an appointment, 92% of urgent care centers maintained wait times of 30 minutes or less in the year 2015, according to the Urgent Care Association of America’s 2016 Benchmarking Report. In contrast, when you go to a hospital emergency room for non emergency care you are part of the triage process where the most at risk patients are rightly seen first. At a local walk in clinic, you can get the care that you need in the order of the number of people in the office. Without the emergency need, these clinics can see patients in order and save you valuable time.
In addition to convenience, these walk in clinics provide affordable care. Hospital emergency room care is some of the most expensive care that is available. With the large overhead of a fully staffed and equipped hospital, ER visits can easily run in the thousands of dollars. At a walk in clinic, prices are sometimes so affordable and predictable that they are posted in the waiting room and online.
Timely primary medical care is important and it is also important to find the right option. As many as 27% of U.S. patients reported in the year 2016 that they had visited an urgent care center in the last two years. Are you one of them?