In need of medical attention but don’t want to visit the ER or wait for a doctor’s appointment? Dr. Ricardo Martinez and the team at Well-Being Medical Center in Naples, FL, offer a walk-in urgent care facility for your needs.
Knowing When to Seek Urgent Care
When you’re sick or injured, you may think that your only options are to wait until you can get in to see your doctor or to visit the emergency room. However, waiting on a doctor’s appointment can leave you waiting too long. And emergency rooms are expensive.
Fortunately, there is another option: urgent care. The question most people ask, though, is when they should choose urgent care over other options. Below, Dr. Martinez and the team at Well-Being Medical Center in Naples, FL, provide the answer.
Classifying Your Issue
Urgent care facilities are designed to offer treatment for a wide range of issues, complaints, and illnesses. However, before diving into when you should visit one, there is an essential rule to understand. If you’re experiencing a life-threatening issue, you need to visit the emergency room, as they are designed for critical issues. These include those such as:
- Chest pain
- Signs of a stroke
- Uncontrollable bleeding
- Vomiting blood
- High fevers in babies
- Head, neck, and spine injuries
In such cases, don’t take any chances. Visit an emergency room immediately. However, if your life is not in danger but your issue still needs immediate attention, urgent care can provide what you need. Below are some of the many examples of times to visit an urgent care facility.
- Stomach issues, such as nausea, persistent vomiting or diarrhea, or stomach pain
- Eye pain, discomfort, or minor injuries
- Ear infections
- Cold and flu
- Fevers
- Headaches
- Sinus infections
- Cuts that aren’t bleeding profusely but may still require stitches
- Muscle pain or ligament sprains
- Dehydration
- Urinary tract infections
Keep in mind that urgent care should never replace visits to your primary care provider. These facilities are available to help with urgent needs but are in no way a replacement for regular wellness care. However, many urgent care facilities like Well-Being Medical Center are an extension of or in addition to primary care facilities. This can be beneficial, as you can receive both wellness and preventative care as well as urgent medical attention under the same roof.