Let’s say that you have a minor mishap in the kitchen. You get distracted by something on the news while chopping carrots and you nick your finger with your kitchen knife. While your cut is too big for a band-aid, it’s certainly not life-threatening, and you will definitely need to get some stitches. Most people in this situation would head to the nearest emergency room, but an urgent care clinic might be the better option.
What is urgent care?
Urgent care clinics are set up to provide medical care for injuries, sicknesses, and ailments that require immediate attention, but are not life-threatening. That cut finger, for example, shouldn’t wait until the next day, but it’s not necessarily cause for a trip to the emergency room. You can think of urgent care as bridging the gap between your primary care physician and the ER. Sometimes you need medical care more quickly than your primary care physician can provide, but it’s not considered a life-threatening emergency.
Urgent care includes a number of medical services such as
- Minor illness
- Infections
- Allergies
- Stomach virus
- Rashes
- Minor surgery
- Sports physicals
- X-ray
- Minor medical emergency
When is urgent care the right option for you?
The easiest way to determine whether urgent care is the right option is to ask your self two questions:
- Do I need immediate medical attention?
- Is my health issue life-threatening?
If your medical issue can wait a couple of days, you can schedule an appointment with your primary care physician. However, if you can’t wait, and your issue is not life-threatening, you should seek urgent care from a walk-in clinic. Here are some examples of when urgent care is right for you.
- Your primary care physician can’t get you in.
- Your primary care clinic is closed.
- A trip to the ER seems excessive.
If you’re ever on the fence about whether you should visit an urgent care clinic or the emergency room, err on the side of caution and go to the ER.
However, if you decide that urgent care is right for you, there are two urgent care clinics conveniently located in Fayetteville. MediServe College is centrally located and MediServe Wedington provides urgent care for those on the Southwest side of town. At MANA MediServe Walk-In Clinic, our clients pay for an office visit but do not have additional urgent care fees that other urgent clinics may charge. These two clinics are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. 7 days a week.