Most family doctors and primary care physicians are overburdened by their caseload, and many of the things that people go to them for can be simply treated. 24 hour urgent care centers have begun to grow rapidly as a result of this. 24 hour urgent care centers are sort of halfway between a doctor’s office and an emergency room. If you or someone in your family has something that should be looked at by a doctor, but it is not an immediately pressing emergency, 24 hour urgent care centers are designed to handle these kinds of walk in cases.

Urgent health care clinics now represent about $14 billion of the economy in the US. The average child catches somewhere between six and ten colds every year. Often, parents will try to schedule an appointment with a doctor, but most colds will not last long enough to justify the wait time for an appointment. Urgent care facilities can handle these and other minor ailments, like minor fractures and sprains, cuts, concussions, gastrointestinal problems (like food poisoning), and other similar things. There are almost seven million bones broken every year, so you can imagine the strain this puts on primary care doctors. Urgent care medical centers can help to ease this burden on primary care physicians and help you to get treatment for your painful, but non life threatening, condition faster.

There is not a 24 hour urgent care facility everywhere at present, but they are spreading and are available in many major metropolitan areas. Always be prepared for potential medical problems by learning where the facilities near you are so you will not have to search when you really need care. Remember, if you need immediate medical care for a serious injury, you should still go to a full hospital emergency room. Reference links.