Seeing your child sick or in pain is one of the worst feelings a parent can experience. So it’s no surprise that every year 25.5 million children are rushed to the emergency room by their caregivers. After all, a panicked parent often assumes this is the best option when accidents or illness strike at inopportune times.
However, in the best interest of you and your child, sometimes the “better-safe-than-sorry” approach is better applied elsewhere. Pay attention to your child’s symptoms to determine if they really warrant a trip to the ER.
According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, freestanding urgent care facilities are a growing, important source of pediatric health care in many communities. With on-site X-ray capabilities, suture and staple application (and removal), and temporary casting and wraps, facilities like Tots ‘N’ Teens Pediatric Urgent Care in Texas are taking the field of medicine by storm.
If your child has experienced a minor sports injury, including scrapes, sprains and strains, cuts or lacerations – save yourself a trip to the ER, and leave it to the experts at urgent care. Strep throat, fever or cold symptoms, pink eye, and ear infections are also common reasons to make a beeline for urgent care facilities.
A trip to the ER can be quite traumatizing for a child; after all, wait times are long, it’s bright and cold, and is filled with injured patrons who often have ailments worse than your own. And while your child may have flinched at their last pediatrician appointment, being exposed to this hustle and bustle may make them miss the comfort of that environment.
Pediatric urgent care is an easy way to avoid undue and excessive wait times, as well as keep your child at ease. Tots ‘N’ Teens is staffed by certified pediatricians who have a warm bedside manner and a wealth of knowledge on both child-centric issues, as well as general medical care.
The age requirement for care will vary by clinic but typically centers like this focus on treating children under the age of 16.
When it comes to injuries, time is of the essence. Since your pediatrician’s limited office hours won’t help on the weekend, late at night, or while you’re on a family vacation – consider pediatric urgent care a welcome alternative.
With extended hours and holiday availability, you’ll never have to worry about seeing that dreaded “closed” sign again. Plus, centers like Tots ‘N’ Teens don’t require an appointment because … who can really plan for these things? Just walk right in, and their friendly doctors will assist you.
Anyone who has ever been to the ER knows that is not only a drain on time but also on your wallet. One article compared emergency rooms to “monopolies,” saying that it’s encumbered patients who end up paying the price.
Urgent care facilities sidestep exorbitantly high insurance co-pays, and a la carte and facility fees (with can reach upward of $250), and instead offer convenient care at a much more reasonable cost. Debt.org estimated that $18 billion could be saved annually by heading to a physician or urgent care center as opposed to emergency rooms.
Don’t take a Band-Aid approach to accidents and blunders; avoid the hefty costs, wait times, and unpleasant atmosphere of the ER.
While urgent care centers are a nice alternative, remember that not all are created equal. The knowledgeable and friendly board-certified pediatricians and nurses at Tots ‘N’ Teens Pediatric Urgent Care in San Antonio, Texas, are trained to treat your little one as quickly and comfortably as possible. They consider themselves an extension of your pediatrician’s office, and it shows through their personalized care and attentive follow-up. For more information, call (210) 267-5411.
