Urgent care vs emergency room — how do you know what is right for your child? What is the purpose of an urgent care facility? What is the difference between urgent care and an emergency room? How do you know which one you should take your child to? These are all common questions parents should know the answer to and we will answer in this article.
A child that is sick or hurt is the last thing any parent wants to deal with. Not knowing where to go for help only makes it that much worse. There are some situations where it is clear that your child needs to be in the emergency room or you should call 911. These would include life-threatening emergencies like serious head injuries, difficulty breathing, poisoning, severe abdominal pain, open fractures, heavy bleeding, severe burns, and loss of consciousness.
On the other hand, an illness or injury that is not life-threatening should be treated at urgent care. We are committed to making sure that every child gets medical expertise and personalized attention so they get the care that they need and you’ll have peace of mind that they are taken care of.
Hours And Staff
The ER is staffed 24/7 with a variety of medical personnel like nurses, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants who are trained to provide emergency care. These facilities have fast access to specialized expert providers for neurology, cardiology, and many more. Just 4 Kids Urgent Care is also staffed with medical personnel like nurses, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants who are trained to provide the highest quality care for children.
Benefits Of Urgent Care Vs Emergency Room
When your child is sick or hurt with non-life-threatening illnesses and injuries, there are many reasons why Just 4 Kids Urgent Care is the best place to get them the help that they need. Here are a few benefits of urgent care.
- Extended hours — You never know when a child is going to get hurt or come down with an illness. Your primary care physician is not always available, but we do our best to make sure you have an option when you need it. We’re open from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. every day.
- Convenience — We are doing everything we can to make an urgent care visit as easy as it can be. You can check in anytime and save your spot in line by using our easy online check-in application. We also offer video chat so if you can’t make it to us, our pediatric providers can meet you online via secure video conference.
- Cost — An urgent care visit is significantly less expensive than a visit to the emergency room for any non-life-threatening illness or injury. In Idaho, the average cost of a visit to the ER is well over $2,000. Urgent care can save you hundreds or even thousands of dollars. We know that when your child is suffering, the cost of a visit is the last thing a parent wants to be worried about.
- Time — When you can check-in online and save your place in line, it makes the visit to urgent care as painless as possible. On the other hand, when you go to the ER, you never know what other emergencies are going on and you may have to wait behind other patients with more life-threatening situations.
- Treatment — Many people are surprised to learn that we treat broken bones, concussions, and many more issues that are sometimes assumed to always require a trip to the emergency room.
When To Visit Urgent Care
If your child is dealing with anything that needs medical attention but doesn’t reach the level of an emergency room visit, we are here to help in Idaho Falls and now Pocatello and Chubbuck. Some examples of the conditions that we treat on a regular basis are:
- Sore throat or cough
- Eye irritation and redness
- Cuts that might need stitches
- Vomiting, diarrhea, or dehydration
- Accidents and falls
- Diagnostic services, including X-rays and laboratory tests
- Fever, flu, and COVID-19
- Broken bones and fractures in fingers or toes
- Breathing difficulties, such as mild to moderate asthma
- Skin rashes and infections
- Sprains and strains
- Constipation
Just 4 Kids Urgent Care
Has your child ever woken from a nap with a fever and you are not sure if it’s just a cold or meningitis? Has your child jumped off the couch right into the coffee table and you don’t know if the cut needs stitches or not? Is this a belly ache or appendicitis? You can’t get in to your pediatrician, and you don’t want to pay for an ER visit. Are you overreacting or ignoring something serious? Being a parent is not for the faint of heart. At Just 4 Kids Urgent Care we bring parents peace of mind.
We hope that this information helps you be prepared if you ever have to choose urgent care vs emergency room and know what to do in that situation. If you have any questions or concerns about urgent care, emergency rooms, or anything else — give us a call. We are here to help and will take great care of your kids.