A trip to urgent care is generally a good idea when you have a medical issue that needs immediate attention but is not necessarily life-threatening or serious enough for a trip to the emergency room.
Urgent care centers are also a good option when you need to see a doctor outside of traditional hours or if you do not have insurance.
However, you may have heard stories about long wait times or other bad experiences at urgent care centers, so it is important to know what to expect, how to prepare and the rights you have as a patient.
Avoiding long wait times
When you arrive at an urgent care center, you must be treated by care providers within 15 minutes. While this may seem like a short period of time, it can leave you in a vulnerable state if you need immediate treatment. The 15 minutes that you are left waiting could cause your symptoms to grow worse or increase the pain you are in from an injury.
You can try to avoid this by checking in online before you go if possible or scheduling an appointment. Although urgent care centers are designed for walk-in patients, some allow appointments.
Call ahead of time and get an estimated wait time. This will help you find out if a better option is available. There might be an urgent care center farther away from you with a shorter wait time.
What items to bring
Prepare as much as you can before going. Have your health insurance information and list of any prescription medications you take ready. You will likely be asked to show identification, so bring that as well.
The country’s for-profit healthcare system sometimes results in a lower quality of care, whether at an urgent care center or another medical facility. If you believe your rights as a patient were violated or that you received substandard care, this could be medical malpractice.
Our health is often one of our biggest priorities and we should be able to trust the medical professionals we see. There are options available to hold negligent healthcare providers accountable after an incident of medical malpractice.