IG Living Blog | The Right Place for the Right Care: Urgent Care vs. the Emergency Room

Great info Maj Kim Patterson

Excellent info for those using the service

So true! I have worked in both environments. The Level One Trauma Service and related Emergency Services are amazing and seemingly chaotic places. As a Chaplain there, I was privileged to spend time with those who were injured or critically ill, but most often I was with the family or friends of the patient. I assure you, this is not the place for an ear infection or sore throat.

I also worked in an Urgent Care Center as a Paramedic. While most of my work was in basic nursing care, my background as a military medic allowed the physician on duty to delegate to me the suturing of lacerations, the application of splints and casts, and the screening of patients whose acuity dictated that we violate the first arrived, first treated. The environment of the Urgent Care is much more relaxed. Nowadays, many Urgent Cares are staffed by a Physician Assistant or Nurse Practitioner.

Adding to this is the cost. The reason your insurance has such a high copay for the ED is that it is an incentive to you to think before you commit. The Urgent Care co-pay is usually a fraction of the ED co-pay because for most it is the right place, and the only way your ER copay is usually waived is if the patient is admitted.