Urgent care centers are growing all throughout the country, with more than 7,000 of them currently in existence from coast to coast and everywhere in between. And the benefits of these urgent care centers are great – and something that more and more are taking advantage of, with up to three million people visiting various urgent care centers over the course of just one week. Served by up to 20,000 doctors as of the current date, the care that one can get at the typical urgent care center is often going to be far, far better and more all encompassing than many people actually realize.
For instance, urgent care locations throughout the country can treat more serious injuries than many people realize. As a matter of fact, well over three quarters of all walk-in clinics and the like can provide fracture care, something that a good deal of people are likely to be surprised to learn indeed. In addition to this, ankle sprains, of which there are as many as 25,000 of all throughout the United States over the course of just one single day, can also be treated with ease at the average urgent care clinic.
Skin conditions are also seen and treated after being assessed in urgent care centers throughout the country as well. Consider, for instance, the average sunburn. Sunburns are incredibly common, as they can occur in as little as 15 minutes in the sun, should various measures of sun protection not have been taken. And while many are uncomfortable and a little painful but relatively unthreatening, others can be much more serious. Therefore, it is hugely important to seek medical care if you feel that you have been very seriously burned. The average urgent care center is a great place to go for this.
Various illnesses can also be treated in urgent care locations throughout the country. After all, the common cold is often something that ends up being assessed by doctors. With up to one billion cases of it occurring each and every year, many people seek help for their symptoms. And while there is currently no cure for the common cold and it simply must be waited out, it’s important to make sure that you are not dealing with a more serious – and more treatable – medical concern. In some cases, common colds can even lead to things like ear infections (particularly common in young children) and sinus infections, both of which will likely need a round of antibiotics to dissipate.
Other infections can also receive diagnosis and treatment in the typical walk in clinics seen throughout the United States. Urinary tract infections are commonly treated in such establishments, in part because they are so commonplace. As a matter of fact, there will be more than eight million urinary tract infections diagnosed and treated over the course of the typical year – and likely many more that will end up going undiagnosed as well. Such conditions can be hugely painful to live with, but can again be easily cleared up with a course of antibiotics – all under the discretion of a doctor, of course.
And walk in urgent care centers are ideal over other forms of medical care not just for the types of medical care that they can provide – though, as we see, such care is quite impressive indeed. In addition to this, going to a walk in urgent care center is simply much more convenient than going to something like an emergency room. After all, it has been found that the typical emergency room wait time is actually now up to an hour long – and in some cases even longer than that. In the average urgent care center, however, the overall wait time is not likely to exceed even half of an hour. For more than half of all urgent care centers seen throughout the country, this wait time is likely to even be as low as a mere 15 minutes – which is certainly ideal for the vast majority of people who are looking to get urgent care treatment, of course.