Urgent care centers are intended to ease the burden on emergency rooms by treating non life threatening injuries and illnesses. Especially in the cold and flu season, it can be tempting to head into emergency rooms if you are feeling under the weather.

With so much emergency room crowding in the Kirkland area during the winter months, knowing when it is okay to see an urgent care facility versus the ER is instrumental in keeping our emergency rooms from over crowding. Conditions most often treated at urgent care centers include:sprains, strains, fractures, upper respiratory illnesses, food poisoning, lacerations, and concussions. Kirkland urgent care, as well as Lynnwood walk in clinic, Everett urgent care, urgent care Ballard, and urgent care seattle are all great facilities that you can visit state wide.

There are several advantages to visiting places such as Kirkland urgent care, that make them more favorable than the ER. In some states, urgent care centers have point of care prescription dispensing, allowing the patient to receive their prescriptions before leaving the center.

Also, 48 percent of adult ER patients, not sick enough to be admitted to the hospital, said they sought out health care at the ER because their physicians’ offices were closed. Places like Kirkland urgent care have longer hours than traditional offices, so visiting Kent urgent care can be more convenient for you in the long run.

When deciding between the ER and urgent care facilities, carefully evaluate if your ailment could be treated by your regular physician. Visiting your physician or an urgent care facility for minor health issues will help keep our ER’s available for patients with life threatening issues. References: doctorsexpresswa.com