Scott Brocato talks with Dr. Allan Rivera, Medical Director at MountainView Regional Medical Center Urgent Care about how to choose between going to an emergency room or Urgent Care.
Scott Brocato:
Let's start with a question: the basic differences between Urgent Care and a hospital ER, emergency room.
Dr. Allan Rivera:
That is a good question. So with regards to Urgent Care and the patients that we see at the Urgent Care clinic, most of these are patients that have lesser acuity. These are mostly patients that can be seen and immediately be discharged on the same day. Cases of which are patients that have a fever, and that doesn't matter if they're like pediatric to geriatric age fevers; nonspecific rash; new onset of throwing up spells, like mild abdominal pain; sore throats and the likes. Those are pretty much cases that we usually see at the Urgent Care clinic.
On the other hand, those that are usually seen at the emergency room are those with higher or more severe acuity, such as chest pains, severe shortness of breath, dizziness, concussions, seizures, and mostly facial lacerations or cuts in the face. Severely broken bone or severe dislocations are some of the few cases that can be or mostly seen or should be seen at the emergency room.
Scott Brocato:
Before a person heads out the door, when should they decide to go to an E.R. or an Urgent Care center? Because sometimes it can be confusing.
Dr. Allan Rivera:
With most cases at the Urgent Care, when patients know or family members know that these are cases wherein they can easily be evaluated and be discharged given their symptoms; meaning like, for example, they are just like really mild symptoms when like even their primary care may not be able to see them, we, the Urgent Care clinic, the Urgent Care facilities, are the ones that are able to accommodate them. That includes like patients that have had...let's start with, for example, women's health, like (if women) have had like cases of delayed menstrual period and they are concerned that are they pregnant or what is going on--these are things that we can easily see and evaluate at the Urgent Care center, because we have tests that we can use to help screen and evaluate it accordingly.
Also, like for elders, where families are aware that their relative has UTI symptoms, they bring them over to us and we are able to immediately test those samples and be able to give them the answers in the fastest time possible. So most of the time, Urgent Care cases wherein patients or family members know and triages at home, but they know that these are light and easy to be evaluated and easily to be treated.
However, there are times wherein patients and family may not be able to judge accordingly, and that's where we come in so we can determine if truly this is more of an urgent versus an emergency case.
Scott Brocato:
And how should one prepare to go to either an Urgent Care center or an ER? What should they bring with them?
Dr. Allan Rivera:
The best thing is first, bringing their identification. That's the most important thing, because one important tool for us to determine the patient is bringing their identification. If they are uninsured or insured, it won't matter for us. If they have their insurance card, by all means, it will be very important to bring their insurance card. If they don't, we will still accommodate them and that will not be a problem. The most important thing is for them to be able to provide us with their identification so as to put them in our system, so that we can process what is necessary for these patients.
