Emergency Room or Urgent Care?

Last updated 8 months ago

Although you may not like to consider the possibility of you or a loved one becoming sick or injured, it is important to know what to do when a medical situation occurs. Many people are unsure where to turn when confronted with a sudden medical condition, so they head to the emergency room. However, urgent care services can be useful for patients in non-life-threatening situations, who may otherwise have to wait a while to be seen in the ER. Here is a guide to some common symptoms and conditions, as well as the level of care they may require:

A visit to the emergency room should occur when you fear that the patient will suffer severe, fatal, or long-term consequences if he or she does not receive immediate medical attention. Any signs of a life-threatening condition, such as a heart attack or stroke, warrant a call to 911. Seek emergency care if you or someone around you is suffering:

Weakness or loss of sensation on one side of the body
Difficulty breathing
Profuse bleeding
Chest pain
Unresponsiveness
Sudden and sharp abdominal pain
Head injury
Burns that are severe or cover large areas of the body
Anaphylactic shock
Prolonged vomiting

In situations where the patient is stable and will not suffer harm if he or she is not seen to immediately, urgent care may be a better choice than emergency care. It can also be a good solution if the condition is too distressing for the patient to wait for an appointment with his or her primary care physician. Examples of occasions to visit an urgent care center include:

Severe cold or flu
Deep or large cut where bleeding is under control
Potentially broken bone
Fever over 101 degrees Fahrenheit
Ear or urinary tract infection
Burns that are not causing acute distress
Mild to moderate allergic reaction

Menorah Medical Center offers both urgent care (151st and 69 Highway) and emergency medical services (119th and Nall) to our community. Call our Nurses-On-Call healthcare referral line at (913) 498-6000 to learn more about our healthcare services, or text “ER” to 23000 to receive a list of emergency room waiting times for Menorah.