What is Urgent Care?
Urgent Care vs. ER? Know Where to Seek Treatment
What happens when you get injured or are sick, and your doctor isn’t available? You may consider an urgent care visit versus going to the Emergency Room. But, what is the better choice?
In the past, many people turned to emergency rooms if their primary doctor was unavailable. However, according to the U.S Department of Health and Human Services, only about 15% of patients seen in emergency rooms have genuine emergencies.
Urgent care centers were developed to fill the space between hospital emergency rooms and your primary care doctor’s office. They are staffed with doctors and other medical professionals. Physician assistants, nurse practitioners, nurses, and technicians are trained to treat urgent medical issues that are not life-threatening.
Urgent care facilities like Bayside Urgent Care provide expert medical care. And, we offer advantages other medical facilities can’t provide. Who else can see you on the same day?
Faster Service
According to Hospital Stats, the average emergency room waiting time in the Tampa area is 3 hours and 15 minutes. Actual wait times vary depending on the severity of the injury.
But, you may have a long wait because patients with life-threatening emergencies are treated first. If your condition is not life-threatening, you will wait before seeing a medical technician, nurse, or doctor.
Visit Bayside Urgent Care Center in Clearwater, FL
Did you know that approximately 85% of ER visits do not require critical medical care?
See our list of services for a full run-down of the conditions we treat.
For these injuries and illnesses, a visit to an urgent care center may be best. At Bayside Urgent Care Center, our experienced doctors and staff see patients with the following:
- Lab testing & blood work
- Nausea & Vomiting
- Physicals
- Rashes
- Sprains
- Stomach pain
- Strep throat
- Work injuries
- and more!
Urgent Care Provides Care for a Lower Cost
Urgent care facilities can provide the same level of quality medical care as an ER. Yet, emergency room costs are approximately 700% higher. Furthermore, when you visit an emergency room, you may see multiple bills from different departments. The cost difference is because hospitals have a much higher overhead than urgent care centers like Bayside.
Here are some cost comparisons from Medica health insurance comparing the difference in cost for treating specific conditions in the urgent care versus an emergency room:
● Acute Bronchitis: $268 urgent care vs. $1,367 ER care
● Allergies: $352 urgent care vs. $1,021 ER care
● Earache: $245 urgent care vs. $1,000 ER care
● Pink Eye: $200 urgent care vs. $621 ER care
● Strep Throat: $310 urgent care vs. $1,301 ER care
● Urinary Tract Infection: $259 urgent care vs. $1,592 ER care
Besides saving money on treatment, your insurance co-pay may also be lower when choosing urgent care vs. ER visits.
When to Go to the ER
Save trips to the emergency department for true, life-threatening medical emergencies. You should call 911 or go to the emergency room when you experience:
● Chest pain
● Severe head injuries
● Heavy bleeding
● Large open wounds
● Warning signs of a stroke: sudden dizziness or change in vision, sudden weakness or numbness, trouble speaking or understanding speech
● Major burns
● When Bayside Urgent Care Center is closed
Get the Help You Need Fast
Our Doctors, Nurses and Physicians Assistants can help you get back to your life quickly.
We are conveniently located in Clearwater, Florida. The center is only a short drive from nearby Clearwater Beach, Largo, Belleair, Dunedin, Countryside, Safety Harbor, Palm Harbor, and Indian Rocks Beach.