Emergency Department or Urgent Care?

Fun experience I had Yesterday. My poor little roommate Thursday night twisted her ankle and woke up the next morning with a very, very swollen ankle and in severe pain! Being the great roommate I am I offered to take her to the Urgent Care or Emergency Department (ED) at the nearest hospital. The conversation played out like this, “the urgent care opens at 8 AM if you can wait I can just bring you there.” "Wait, do urgent cares have x-rays?” “oh, probably not.” We then decided to head over to the ED at the nearest hospital to us. To only find out, after we had been in the ED for nearly 6 hours, that we could have gone to Urgent Care. Which not only would have saved us time, but Urgent Cares are normally cheaper then going to your ED. Now, we’re two educated girls in our early twenties and we didn’t think Urgent Care took x-rays and I feel like we aren’t the only people who didn’t know that or reasons why you should go to Urgent Care Over ED. Understanding the difference and when to refer patients that come in your community setting is essential. Not everyone has primary care doctors and when situations like a sprained ankle happens, your in a lot of pain and waiting another day or two for an appointment can seem like an eternity. Plus, when something happens most patients think to automatically go to ED. It is important to educate your patients the difference to help them possibly saving time and money by avoiding the ED if possible! Did you know that 44% of cases in the ED can be handled in Urgent Care. That is CRAZY high number!!

Reasons to go to Urgent Care:

1. Sprangs and broken bones (not severe displaced or has broken the skin broken bones)

2. Small cuts that might require a few stitches

3. Dehydration

4. Flu like symptoms

5. Fever with out a rash

6. Allergic skin reactions (that don’t involve swelling of throat from the reaction)

7.Sore throat, ear pain, cough and congestion

8. Red/itchy eyes

9. Minor Burns

9. Animal Bites

10. Urinary Tract Infection

Reasons to go to the ED:

1. Extremely high fever

2. Difficulty breathing

3. Heart attack/ stroke

4. Chest pain

5. Uncontrolled bleeding

6. Poisoning

7. Major burns

8. Sudden numbness or weakness

9. Head/major trauma

10. Disorientation or confusion

11. Drug overdose

12. Seizures or loss of consciousness

There are many more for both list, but most often and Urgent Care knowns their limits when being able to help a patient and to send them to ED. Urgent Cares are great centers for patients to save time, money, and help be able to keep down the number of patients in the waiting room of an ED that can easily be treatable. (If it is appropriately for it to be treated at that Urgent Care center.) Educating your patients when they come to you with certain situations and referring them when you are unable to help them with over the counter products or if their condition says the same or worsen.

Perfect example of this was myself two weeks ago. I had gotten a rash, no fever, and by the end of the day I had a swollen/sore throat. I talked to my pharmacist and she recommended for me to take a Benadryl and it should hopefully clear it up. My symptoms did decrease for awhile, but as the medication wore off I noticed the rash had moved to my arms and my throat felt worse. I talked to my pharmacist again and she told me to contact my primary care doctor. However, I don’t have one here in Baltimore. She then told me to go to urgent care then. The time I spent there was about an hour and half and had two different diagnoses. I had an allergic reaction {found out I can’t use the detergent I had just boughten} and that I had strep throat!

I hope this helps us become more aware to talk to our patients more and to give them resources on where to go if their need goes outside the scope of your practice.

Sources:

Scrips. (2018. August 8.) Should You Go to the Emergency Room or Urgent Care. 4231-should-you-go-to-the-emergency-room-or-urgent-care

Cigna. [Accessed 2018, August 24] Urgent Care vs he Emergency Room.https://www.cigna.com/individuals-families/understanding-insurance/urgent-care-emergency-room

Joy, Kevin. (2017, September 14.) Urgent Care vs. Emergency Room: Whats the difference?. https://healthblog.uofmhealth.org/health-management/urgent-care-vs-emergency-room-whats-difference 

Fay, Bill. (2018, May 24). Emergency Room vs. Urgent Care: Difference in service and cost. https://www.debt.org/medical/emergency-room-urgent-care-costs/

***WARNING: I am not a license pharmacist or Physician. I am just a student doing research on what Urgent Care vs Emergency Department takes care of and sharing my findings to y’all. I do not promote one over the other, and you as an individual in an situation should make your own decision on what you feel comfortable with.