Unexpected health problems do come up, no matter how well you take care of your health. If you are in Fort Collins urgent care and emergency medical care are both available, but which makes the most sense for you?As a general rule, emergency care is called for when you require immediate medical attention, care that cannot wait. Urgent care is appropriate when you experience an illness or injury that necessitates attention within a day.
Go directly to the emergency room if you are experiencing any symptom or condition that is threatening to life or limb, such as signs of a heart attack or stroke, severe shortness of breath, coughing up or vomiting blood, severe wounds or amputations, broken bones, poisoning, high fevers, or suicidal or homicidal feelings. These are all signs that you need immediate medical attention.Urgent care can be a great alternative to the emergency room for many.
An urgent care facility is equipped to take care of many of the same conditions as an emergency room, just not life-threatening traumas and illnesses. Urgent care clinics are best used when you find yourself injured or ill, and cannot wait for an appointment with your regular doctor. An example of things that could take you to a Fort Collins urgent care facility are a fever without a rash, vomiting or diarrhea, sprains, or cuts that may need stitches.
Because emergency medical care in Fort Collins is designed to take care of critical injuries and acute illnesses, patients whose conditions are life-threatening are always taken first, which can leave patients with less severe conditions waiting for hours, especially if the ER triage unit decides your situation is not immediately life-threatening.
Another factor contributing to the long wait times at emergency rooms is the fact that patients know that they cannot be turned away. For a variety of reasons, many people do not have access to health insurance. This can price primary care physicians out of their reach. The ER becomes their only access to healthcare they have.
Generally, urgent care facilities in Fort Collins are less overwhelmed by critically ill patients, and patients can expect to be seen by a physician much sooner than in an emergency room. However, as most urgent care centers accept walk-in patients, there can be some wait time involved. Nonetheless, going to urgent care instead of the emergency room usually will save you a lot of time.
Urgent care is often much less expensive than going to the emergency room, as well. Hospitals staff and stock emergency rooms to handle the most severe health crises, and the cost reflects this preparation. Most health insurances offer incentives, in the form of lower copays, to go to urgent care over the emergency room. It goes without saying that, if your life or limb is at stake, go to the ER. However, for other unexpected but pressing medical needs, Fort Collins’ urgent care clinics are a cost and time-saving alternative.