First Urgent Care Visit – What to Know

At an Urgent Care facility, fully trained healthcare professionals provide health care for urgent health issues that require care within 24 hours. For those who have never been to an Urgent Care before, we have put together this helpful guide.

What to Bring Before your Visit

Health Insurance Information

Patients who do have health insurance should bring their health insurance card and identification, such as a passport, or a drivers license. If your insurance is accepted and your health insurance provider is notified of your visit, there can be a copay fee. Different forms of payment that you can also bring along with you are credit cards, debit cards, and cash.

Important Patient Forms

When visiting an Urgent Care facility, you need to fill out the required paperwork that is provided to you at the office. You can also download this paperwork and fill it out prior to arriving at the care center.

These forms include the patient intake form, which collects your contact information and health history, as well as a minor consent form if the treatment is for an individual under 18.

Urgent Care or Emergency Room?

Severity of Health Issue

It’s important to understand that when you go to an Urgent Care, it must be a non life-threatening illness or injury, such as: infections, vomiting, simple fractures or sprains, minor burns, fever, etc. For this kind of treatment, an Urgent Care will be the most efficient and cost effective option.

Difference in Wait Time

At Urgent Care, there are health physicians that will be able to work with you in a timely pace compared to an emergency room. Most of the time, the wait at an Urgent Care facility is much shorter.

At an emergency room, the costs can costs hundreds of dollars, but at an Urgent Care, there is an affordable fee with high quality care. If you can’t get to the emergency room, or don’t want to wait in a long line, most Urgent Care clinics offer extended hours, and are open seven days a week.

Follow Up Visits

Urgent Care is meant for initial treatment, but for long term care, your Urgent Care health provider will refer you to your primary physician for follow-up visits.

Following your visit at Urgent Care, it is important to notify your primary health physician of the treatment received upon your visit.

Prescription Medications

Your Urgent Care physician can prescribe you any needed medication during your visit, which you can acquire at a local pharmacy. However, for long term prescriptions, your primary care physician is the proper source for refills.