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5 Reasons to Visit an Urgent Care for Your Health : Sprained Ankle

Sprained ankles are caused by an injury or trauma, causing ligaments to overstretch and become inflamed. Symptoms of a sprained ankle include: pain, swelling, bruising and loss of range of motion. An injured ankle can sometimes become even more painful after resting; if you feel like your symptoms are getting worse rather than better, seek medical help right away. The sooner you can get your ankle checked out and treat any minor injuries that occurred during your sprain, the faster you’ll recover.

We all have days when we just don’t feel up to par. The human body is a complex thing, and it doesn’t always feel good. Our first inclination is usually rest and hydration—which can be important—but there are some health ailments that need urgent care. In those instances, you’ll want to visit your local urgent care center instead of waiting it out at home. Here are five reasons why

An ankle sprain is one of those injuries that can slow you down and hold you back from doing what you love. But many people don’t know where to turn when they experience a mild injury such as a sprained ankle, especially if they are not yet ready to see their doctor. That’s why urgent care centers have become so popular—they provide fast, affordable treatment without all of the office wait times or long-term appointments. A visit to your nearest clinic can get you out of pain quickly and on your way to recovery without unnecessary hassle or cost. Here are five reasons why visiting an urgent care center is often better than going directly to your primary care doctor

5 Reasons to Visit an Urgent Care for Your Health : Herniated Disc

Spinal discs act as shock absorbers between bones in your spine. If a disc herniates, it can cause pain and numbness in nearby areas by pinching nerves. Visiting a specialist at an urgent care clinic can help relieve symptoms of nerve compression and reduce your risk of surgery or permanent damage.

Spinal discs act as shock absorbers between bones in your spine. If a disc herniates, it can cause pain and numbness in nearby areas by pinching nerves. Visiting a specialist at an urgent care clinic can help relieve symptoms of nerve compression and reduce your risk of surgery or permanent damage. Most people with herniated discs will have pain that goes away on its own within three months. However, if you experience significant back or neck pain that lasts longer than two weeks, you should seek medical attention immediately. The same is true if you notice any weakness in your arms or legs or loss of bladder control caused by injury to your spinal cord. These are all signs that immediate treatment is necessary to avoid further complications from a herniated disc.

Discs are cushions of fluid and collagen that act as a shock absorber between your vertebrae. Although most of us will live our entire lives without experiencing a slipped disc, when it does happen it can be excruciatingly painful. Sitting or standing up quickly or straining yourself, such as coughing or sneezing, can cause a herniated disc by forcing discs beyond their natural limit. Urgent care facilities are equipped with x-ray technology that allows physicians to see if you have any misalignment in your spine, which is vital in identifying whether or not you’ve injured your discs and what kind of treatment is needed.

Disc herniation occurs when a portion of a disc in your spine pushes through and puts pressure on an adjacent nerve. Although discs are meant to be flexible, those that undergo too much movement can tear, which can result in severe pain. If you’ve ever had back spasms—which involve such intense muscle contraction that it’s almost as if someone is pulling on your spine—you’ve probably experienced what it feels like to have a ruptured disc. In many cases, herniated discs resolve themselves within several weeks; however, you may need additional treatment if your symptoms continue past three months or cause long-term disability.

5 Reasons to Visit an Urgent Care for Your Health : Shoulder Pain

Can’t keep up with your busy schedule? Don’t have time to make it into a primary care doctor’s office? Urgent care clinics are popping up all over, offering walk-in services that help patients who need medical attention but can’t fit a doctor appointment into their schedules. If you’re suffering from shoulder pain, visiting an urgent care could be ideal solution.

In most cases, shoulder pain is caused by wear and tear on your tendons and ligaments from repetitive use. If you frequently carry heavy objects or perform manual labor, you might want to consider a visit to a chiropractor or physical therapist. But if your shoulder pain comes out of nowhere (like a sudden onset of pins and needles), seek medical attention immediately. Shoulder pain can sometimes be a sign of a more serious condition that requires emergency care, like stroke or heart attack.

An urgent care clinic is designed specifically for injuries and illnesses that are not life-threatening but require immediate attention. If you are suffering from shoulder pain, it is best to visit an urgent care clinic as soon as possible. While minor shoulder pain can be treated at home with over-the-counter medication or with a homemade remedy, some injuries need immediate treatment. Common causes of shoulder pain include arthritis, dislocation or fracture. Severe shoulder pain can lead to ongoing chronic discomfort in your daily activities if not treated right away. If you have suffered a significant trauma such as falling on your arm, there could be internal damage causing severe bruising and swelling around your injured area even without visible external signs of trauma.

Shoulder pain is a common health complaint, with hundreds of thousands of visits every year. Shoulder pain can be caused by injury or trauma, like falling on your shoulder, but it can also be caused by chronic degenerative diseases. In cases where you have persistent shoulder pain that doesn’t subside with rest or usual home treatments, it might be time to pay a visit to an urgent care clinic. Here are five reasons why

5 Reasons to Visit an Urgent Care for Your Health

An urgent care is the place to go when you have an injury or illness that’s too serious to wait until the next business day to address, but not severe enough to require emergency treatment at an ER. You don’t have to be in immediate danger in order to get valuable treatment from an urgent care—there are many reasons why you might visit one and want to know more about it before you walk through their doors. Here are five of the most common reasons why you should consider making a trip to your local urgent care center instead of your doctor’s office, hospital, or even the ER.

1) Shoulder Pain

Can’t keep up with your busy schedule? Don’t have time to make it into a primary care doctor’s office? Urgent care clinics are popping up all over, offering walk-in services that help patients who need medical attention but can’t fit a doctor appointment into their schedules. If you’re suffering from shoulder pain, visiting an urgent care could be ideal solution.

2) Herniated Disc

Spinal discs act as shock absorbers between bones in your spine. If a disc herniates, it can cause pain and numbness in nearby areas by pinching nerves. Visiting a specialist at an urgent care clinic can help relieve symptoms of nerve compression and reduce your risk of surgery or permanent damage.

3) Sprained Ankle

Sprained ankles are caused by an injury or trauma, causing ligaments to overstretch and become inflamed. Symptoms of a sprained ankle include: pain, swelling, bruising and loss of range of motion. An injured ankle can sometimes become even more painful after resting; if you feel like your symptoms are getting worse rather than better, seek medical help right away. The sooner you can get your ankle checked out and treat any minor injuries that occurred during your sprain, the faster you’ll recover.

4) Upper Respiratory Infection

An Upper Respiratory Infection (URTI) is a viral or bacterial infection of your nose, throat and sinuses. Common symptoms of URTI include: a runny or stuffy nose, sore throat, cough and sneezing. If you experience one or more of these symptoms, it’s best to get in touch with your doctor right away; especially if these conditions persist beyond 10 days.

5) Food Poisoning

If you feel like something you ate has made you sick, it’s a good idea to see a doctor as soon as possible. Food poisoning is most common in restaurants and food establishments where food is handled improperly or left out too long. If you’ve recently eaten out and feel like something isn’t right, don’t wait it out—visit your nearest urgent care center.

Do you need immediate access without waiting in long lines at the emergency room (ER)?

If you’re sick or injured and are not experiencing life-threatening symptoms, a trip to urgent care might be your best bet. By visiting urgent care centers—which have longer hours than ERs and often take walk-in patients—you can get medical help without sitting in waiting rooms or overpaying for services that don’t require hospital admission. This can save you time and money if you don’t need immediate access to a full-service hospital.

Urgent care clinics, also known as walk-in centers, allow you to see a physician immediately without having to wait in long lines at emergency rooms. This can be beneficial if you’re sick and want access to medical care as soon as possible. At urgent care clinics, you’ll get treated by licensed physicians and certified nurses; however, services are more limited than what you’d receive at a hospital. Many urgent care centers offer treatments for non-life threatening illnesses like strep throat, upper respiratory infections (including allergies), minor cuts and burns, rashes and other skin ailments and more.

Waiting in a long line at a hospital ER, especially when you don’t have an emergency, can be frustrating. Instead of sitting for hours and getting little help from people you might not know, visit an urgent care clinic. These clinics are popping up all over because they offer faster service without having to wait in long lines or seeing a doctor who doesn’t know your health history. For example, if you have allergies and go to your family doctor who specializes in diabetes—you won’t get much help and could even make your symptoms worse. At urgent care centers, doctors see patients every day and have immediate access to your medical records so that they can provide specific treatments right away.

An urgent care center (also called a walk-in clinic) offers on-demand medical attention in about half the time it takes to get an appointment with your primary care physician. And because you can walk right in, urgent care centers are never too busy to see you.

If you have a non-emergency, but need quick care and treatment, check out your local urgent care center. These clinics provide quick access to medical professionals who can prescribe antibiotics or other medications and do minor lab work (as they may not be able to do any tests like a blood test). If you’re looking for medicine or treatment right away and there isn’t an emergency clinic in your area, then heading to your nearest ER might be your best bet. The ER is designed for emergent care after all! Be sure to check your health insurance plan and see if your visit is covered. Many insurance companies require that you go to urgent care as opposed to going straight to the ER because of cost cutting measures.

Does your health plan cover urgent care visits?

Some health plans, especially plans that don’t include out-of-network benefits, only cover office visits to primary care physicians and specialists. If you see a doctor who isn’t part of your plan’s network, you could face hefty copayments (e.g., $100 per visit) or even uncovered charges on top of that amount.

Many health plans only cover urgent care visits for injuries sustained in an accident. To make sure you’re covered, read your insurance plan or visit your plan’s website to learn more about what’s covered and what isn’t. If you aren’t sure if your health plan covers urgent care at all, check with them directly before paying out of pocket. You should also ask whether they offer a discount if you go to certain urgent care clinics in their network. In some cases, if you have a certain type of high-deductible health plan (HDHP), using an urgent care clinic as opposed to going to your doctor will save you money on copays, coinsurance and deductibles.

Unless you have an Obamacare health plan, urgent care visits are likely to be out-of-pocket. Depending on your policy, you may end up paying $80 or more per visit. If that’s not a concern for you, then there’s no reason to worry about going to urgent care. But if it is a big deal, then make sure you check your policy carefully and contact your insurance company before visiting one so you know exactly what’s covered and what isn’t. Many times plans will have co-pays for certain services like X-rays or office visits—it’s important to ask about those in advance so as not to get blindsided by surprise costs.

If you’re under 65, odds are that urgent care visits won’t be covered by your health insurance. Check your plan to be sure—or ask your doctor or employer if they have a preferred urgent care practice in their network. Another option is to bring cash, since many urgent care practices accept both credit cards and cash (and some even offer discounts for paying with cash). One more tip: If you’re using a health savings account card (HSA), check with your provider to see if it will reimburse you for co-pays on urgent care visits, but keep in mind that not all HSA cards are accepted at all practices.

Are you sick enough to stay home but don’t want to infect your family or co-workers?

If you’re sick enough to be bedridden, but not sick enough to call out of work or school, it may be a good idea to visit an urgent care center. An urgent care center is staffed by a variety of professionals such as nurse practitioners and physicians assistants who can diagnose your condition and give you some much-needed medicine and advice.

If you’re sick enough to stay home but not sick enough to visit your doctor, it might be time to visit an urgent care center. An urgent care facility is a place where patients can get treated for illnesses that aren’t serious enough for a hospital. These clinics are more convenient than visiting a regular doctor’s office and more affordable than being admitted to a hospital. When you go to your primary care physician with a non-emergency medical issue, they may refer you to urgent care because they don’t have any available appointments until next week or they don’t carry all of the necessary equipment or medications.

In most cases, you’re probably better off heading to an urgent care center instead of your primary care physician’s office. While a trip to urgent care might cost you a little more, it will likely save you time and keep your germs from spreading. Plus, urgent cares are often open on nights and weekends when your doctor’s office might not be. This is especially important for those who can’t take sick days from work—the flu shot is no longer just for kids! Instead of infecting everyone at home or bringing a cold into work, head to urgent care in order to avoid complications from even something as simple as walking pneumonia.

Take a moment to weigh your options, especially if you work in a hospital or other medical setting. Are you going to risk spreading illness to your colleagues by dragging yourself into work sick? Or are you going to take a day off and recover properly? An urgent care facility is ideal for when you don’t want to be out sick too long but know that what ails you isn’t serious enough to go straight to the emergency room.

A visit to an urgent care clinic is a convenient way to get immediate relief and keep your germs at bay. While these clinics generally aren’t able to provide the same level of care as a hospital, you can still receive X-rays, lab work and basic treatments. The wait times are much shorter than they would be at an emergency room, too. If you’re healthy enough to go out and about, but don’t want everyone else around you getting sick, a trip to urgent care is for you.

Do you need X-rays or lab tests right away?

Even if you don’t think so, it’s possible that you do. Many urgent care facilities have radiology departments and lab services on site. These doctors know what tests to order and how quickly to get them done in a way that large emergency rooms typically can’t replicate. And, when it comes to X-rays or other imaging procedures, they also know what kinds of films are appropriate for each patient—something radiologists at large hospitals might not take into account.

Sometimes symptoms of more serious health problems can begin to appear without you even realizing it. For example, head or chest pain may signal a heart attack, while extreme fatigue could indicate a blood clot or infection. If you’re experiencing any of these symptoms and think they could be signs of something more serious, go to your doctor right away—but if it’s past office hours or you don’t have access to immediate medical care, visit an urgent care facility. Most urgent cares offer X-rays and lab tests on site—and their doctors are trained to handle every kind of illness from colds to skin conditions to broken bones.

All urgent care centers have X-ray and lab services, as well as diagnosis and treatment. Sometimes, your regular doctor’s office won’t have certain tests or equipment available right away — and sometimes it can take hours for results. Going to an urgent care center allows you to get everything done quickly and go home instead of sitting in a crowded waiting room at your doctor’s office. It also keeps you from having to wait hours for your appointment with your regular physician just so they can send you on your way. If you need immediate medical attention but don’t want to wait around in a hospital emergency room all day, consider visiting an urgent care center instead.

If you’re not feeling well and it’s a weekend or holiday, a trip to your regular doctor might mean waiting hours for a quick diagnosis. That’s where urgent care clinics come in. They’re walk-in facilities that offer most of the same services as your primary care physician, but with quicker access and shorter wait times. To find one close to you, look up urgent care clinics near me . If you feel like there may be something seriously wrong and don’t have time to wait, visit any local urgent care center or walk-in clinic instead of your primary physician for faster treatment.

Going to urgent care when you’re not sure if you need to see a doctor can save time and, potentially, money. If you’re unsure about what symptoms are minor and which ones require immediate medical attention, visit urgent care or another walk-in clinic. If it turns out your injuries are more serious than they initially seemed, a trip to urgent care saves you from getting sent home with instructions to drink plenty of fluids and get some rest. Instead, you get treated right away—and that means quicker recovery.

Do you need stitches or drugs that aren’t available at a regular doctor’s office?

If you have a cut that requires stitches, or you need prescription medication, your urgent care clinic may be your best option. Visiting a walk-in clinic will help you avoid going to a crowded emergency room and waiting for hours while you sit in pain. Many urgent care centers are open late and on weekends too, so they’re very accessible. If it’s after hours when you get hurt, just call ahead to let them know how many people need treatment—an urgent care clinic will often see multiple patients at once.

Are you getting blood drawn, or taking care of a deep cut? If so, it may be worth your time to visit an urgent care center instead of your usual physician. The doctors at these facilities are often board-certified and can treat minor problems like yours more quickly than you’d be able to see your regular doctor. Plus, they often have access to over-the-counter drugs that may not be available at a regular doctor’s office.

While there are a number of situations that might call for an urgent care, it’s important to remember that these offices aren’t meant to replace your regular medical provider. If you need stitches or a prescription for a drug you can’t get from your doctor, urgent care is a good option—but going to urgent care when you just have a really bad case of strep throat isn’t going to help anyone. Instead, make sure that you go to your regular provider when in doubt about which doctor (or type of doctor) you should be seeing. Most providers will tell you if they think it would be best for you to head elsewhere; listen and trust their advice!

Reasons You Should Visit an Urgent Care : Is it life threatening?

Even if you’re seeing a doctor at your local hospital, it’s not always a bad idea to seek care in an urgent care center. These centers are often staffed by board-certified physicians and can see you for illnesses like cold and flu symptoms, or even minor sprains and fractures. That said, if you think you’re having a heart attack or experiencing another life-threatening emergency, do not go to urgent care—go directly to your nearest emergency room. As long as you go for nonlife threatening ailments, however, don’t be afraid to use your local urgent care center as well as general practitioners. After all, doctors are busy people and don’t always have time on their schedules.

Not every ailment is a medical emergency, but sometimes even a minor ailment can become serious if not treated quickly. Make sure you know what’s worthy of urgent care. Unexpected illness and injuries occur more often than you think and not everyone has access to a primary care physician. For example, toothache could be easily taken care of with a trip to your dentist, but some cases are severe enough that you need immediate attention at an urgent care facility. Depending on your condition, it might be best to call ahead or check out local urgent cares to find out how they handle walk-ins and emergencies before you find yourself in dire straits.

An urgent care center is best used for non-life threatening injuries and illnesses. The point of going to a professional is to get advice from someone who can make decisions and take action immediately. If you have something that’s life threatening, it’s best to go directly to an emergency room. It’s better for you and it’s better for everyone else on your wait list in case your illness or injury does turn out to be non-urgent.

While most urgent care centers provide similar services, one important way to tell them apart is by their level of expertise. While all of them can treat non-life threatening conditions such as minor burns and bumps and bruises, not all urgent care centers are created equal. Be sure to find out if your local urgent care center has a board-certified doctor (or doctors) who will be overseeing treatment and making decisions about your health. If they do not have a physician on site, it might be better to go straight to a hospital emergency room instead—especially if you are in danger or worried about anything serious going on with your body. In that case, you don’t want anyone second guessing you or making uninformed decisions when it comes to your health.