Research Paper on "Urgent Care Centers Filling a Gap for PCP's and ER"

Research Paper 6 pages (2432 words) Sources: 6

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Urgent Care Centers filling a gap for PCPs and ERS

All over America, ER and PCPs are losing themselves to the Urgent care centers. It is clear that they are taking over because they are the more reasonable source of emergency care. This essay show that these urgent care centers are more beneficial because they are able to give walk-in, lengthy hour admission for injury care and acute illness that is either beyond the possibility or accessibility of the typical most vital care practice or retail clinic. There are over 8,800 urgent care centers in the U.S., about 4,500 of which are completely-fledged centers that would meet the ethics for a Specialized Urgent Care center. With that said, it is clear that Urgent care centers are becoming first choice over ER and PCPs simply because they are convenient. Even though most patients favor to be seen by their main care doctor when in need of serious attention appointments set for the same day, sometimes, they are not always accessible. This essay will discuss urgent care centers are becoming an option over ER and PCPs due to that fact they have become convenient, easy to afford and their effectiveness.

Urgent Care Centers filling a gap for PCPs and ERS

The urgent care center and retail health clinic market presently is worth around $10 billion and is composed for strong growth in the future as the lack of primary care doctors and jam-packed emergency rooms progressively move patients to retail sites, as stated by new data by Market data Enterprises, which is an independent market research publisher. Most understand that after tolerating throat pain and a runny nose for two days, it can reach the point of being unbearable (Weinick & Mehrotra, 2010). Research shows that the doctor's office normally make a person wait three days for an appointment until three days later, and the alternative of waiting for hours in a hospital emergency room for cold symptoms does not sound appealing. This tale is common as access to seeing a medical doctor is becoming more difficult. Although most patients prefer to be seen by their primary care physician when in need of acute care, same day appointments are not always available leading to overcrowding in emergency rooms, however, urgent care centers are an option that should be utilized due to their accessibility, affordability and professionalism.

Urgent care centers are freestanding facilities that offer extended weekday, weekend and holiday hours. Most stay open for 365 days a year. For adults who work a standard nine to five schedule, getting in to be seen during a doctor's daytime schedule is difficult. Same is true for school age children, who need an annual physical for sports. With urgent care's walk in policy, it is more convenient to see a doctor; later in the day, seven days a week.

Figure 1 Demand for Urgent Care centers in U.S.

In the United States, approximately 8,700 of these are in operation, plus 700-800 new clinics expected to open every year. These no appointment needed offices allow easy access too many areas; urban, suburban and rural locales. Whether close to home, away for business or on vacation, if the need for non-life-threatening care arises, rather than going to an emergency room, an urgent care center is a more appropriate choice to make.

Some experts believe that Emergency care in the United States basically just deserves a C-," as said by a report which had been published by the American College of Emergency Physicians. Many will debate that going to an ER for care that is urgent may not necessarily be considered the best solution. As an alternative, U.S. these care centers are able to provide the urgent care services that a patient will need without the long wait times that are typical of an ER especially when it comes down to accessibility. With What makes a lot of these centers very accessible is the fact that a lot of them have a policy of, "No Appointment Needed." (Finn & Neill, M. a, 2006). Have that pasted in their rules makes life easier for many patients to be able to receive crucial or emergency needs. We offer numerous instant healthcare services. There are some centers that have this walk-in clinic type of situation can finish up back-to-school physicals, monitor cholesterol levels, test for hearing loss, stitch a cut, inform shot records, digital x-ray (coming soon) or manage drug screenings for your business's employees.

Figure 2 Comparison of Budget and average wait time

Many individuals discover the convenience of urgent care centers to be for the most part attractive. They are appropriately situated and provide hours of actions that most clinics are not. So despite the fact a traditional hospitals office may shut down at 5 p.m., urgent care centers are the ones that stay open in the evening and also on the weekends. The lesser prices which will be discussed later on in the essay are also a selling point to consumers (Walensky, 2006).

A lot of these centers believe that when they treat a person's injury or provide care for their illness, that patient will always receive the personalized courtesy and excellent medical services that a patient and their family deserve. A lot of these new care centers are starting to endorse their messages more clearly so that people will not shy away from the medical clinic. They are endorsing messages that center on people not having to wait days, weeks or even months for a to get an appointment at a doctor (Walensky, 2006). They want people to know that all they have to do is just walk-in to our Urgent Care Center and the center promise to take really good care of them. At a lot of these centers, the beauty about the whole thing is that no appointment is necessary for most of these services (Walensky, 2006). For the patient's added convenience, a lot of these centers are coming up with ways to make coming in and going out easier. For example, they have made patient registration forms & bill pay services available online. Furnished with onsite x-ray, physical therapy, and laboratories our Urgent Care centers treat an extensive diversity of general medical conditions (Finn & Neill, M. a, 2006).

Figure 3 This graph shows the patient growth in the urgent centers.

These new centers want people to feel comfortable when they decide to choose their facilities because they truly promise that their visit will start with a warm greeting and a sincere concern for whatever their emergency or healthcare services could be. One thing involving the accessibility is making sure that the patients know that they are indeed in good hands. Some centers are starting to go out of their way to make sure patients know that every member of their team was carefully chosen for their specialties and their exceptional aptitudes to connect with them. Plus, it is good for patients to know that most walk-in urgent care centers are functioned as open medical atmospheres with costs for healthcare services and clinical visits conspicuously posted behind their registration desk (Davidson & Karlan, 2007). Many centers are starting to push the policy that they do not believe there should be any kind of surprises when a patient goes to pay their bill. They are starting to hire staff that is more courteous and Board-Certified Physicians, PA's and ARNPs that will continue to stay devoted to their goal of giving to communities across the country with affordable choices and dynamic answers to the increasing prices of medical care (Krug, 2006).

Being able to afford these clinics has been a huge concern for many Americans. It is obvious affordability will either make or break the patient. Whether or not a patient has insurance, U.S. HealthWorks Medical Group will be able handle a patient's healthcare needs. This is the reason why many of these centers are trying to change up their game plan. Many know that people are being turned away every day because they simply cannot afford the service. However, these centers are starting to upgrade the way that they are doing things so that nobody will be denied. These centers want to make sure that their convenient Urgent Care centers will be able to provide quality medical care, excellent customer service, and a well-informed staff to the communities that they serve, in spite of a patient's insurance rank (Krug, 2006). They want to stress the point that when minor wounds and ailments do not need hospital care, or when your family doctor is not accessible, they are here for them.

Also in making sure that things are much more affordable, and now, because of the current financial challenges, a lot of these centers desire to help in these hard times by proposing a low-cost, self-pay selection for Urgent Care appointments (Phil Galewitz, 2012). In spite of everything, nothing is really more significant than a patient's good health. This low-cost choice is perfect for people that… READ MORE

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