The Increasing Popularity Of Urgent Care Clinics

Finding a new doctor is a decision that thousands of Americans face on a daily basis. For some, it is in response to some sort of sudden illness, and for others it can simply be a result of moving to a new city or state. Whatever the reason may be, finding the right doctor for you and your family is important. What might surprise you is that you can find this at an urgent care clinic. Here are some great things to know about why after hours urgent care centers across the country are becoming more popular each and every day:

1. Availability – One of the reasons for the popularity of after hours urgent care clinics are their hours of availability. In fact, over 90% of urgent care clinics remain open until 7pm or later on weeknights, and two out of five remaining open until 9pm. Not only are urgent care centers open longer hours for your convenience, but you won’t have to wait once you get there. A a survey conducted by The Urgent Care Association of America found that nearly 60% of patients wait 15 minutes or less to be seen.

2. Cost – Another perk of choosing to visit a doctor at an after hours urgent care rather than a hospital is cost. Urgent care facilities are cheaper than an emergency room visit which means you will be saving time and money. We all hope to have to visit the doctor as infrequently as possible, but if something does come up and you are facing an illness or injury, it’s nice to know that you won’t be spending an extraordinary amount.

3. Treatment Options – Sometimes after hours urgent care clinics get a reputation for only being a place to go if you have an itchy throat or a slight cold. That information is absolutely incorrect! Nowadays you can visit an urgent care for just about anything that isn’t an emergency. In fact, Four out of five urgent care facilities provide fracture care.

The next time you are faced with deciding on a new doctor, remember to visit your local after hours urgent care. It’s likely that you have one near your home that is open late, costs less than standard doctor visits, and can treat most non emergency situations. Talk about a win-win!