Urgent care facilities have become common. Most people live within close proximity to one or more. These facilities can be handy for quick-fix issues that need speedy attention, but don’t require an emergency room. Urgent care often is open after hours and on weekends, making it a convenient option for busy people. In addition, they are often less expensive than a visit to the emergency room.

Despite all of this, depending on your reason for visiting, urgent care may not be your best choice. Here’s why:

1. Lack of medical history
Your family physician or pediatrician knows you and your children best. They have records of all of your previous visits and are familiar with your medical history. The urgent care facility will not have this same understanding of your background. They will be able to assess your current illness or ailment, but will not have your full medical history to add context to the situation.

2. Possible drug interaction issues
You always want to be careful about drug interactions between anything you are taking now and whatever the urgent care physician prescribes. Because that physician does not have your full medical history, they also may not know what you are currently taking or what you have had experience with – good or bad – in the past. If you do go to urgent care, make sure you tell them everything about medications you are taking now, allergies, or adverse effects you have experienced in the past. Then check with your pharmacist and your family physician to make sure the any medication prescribed by the urgent care physician is safe for you to take.

3. Difficulty following up
When you visit urgent care, you may have trouble following up with the physician you saw. Sometimes the staff you saw at night is not available during the day, or they may hold a position with another medical facility during other hours. Often, the urgent care physician will tell you during your visit to schedule a follow-up appointment with your own family physician. This is always a good idea and will give you the opportunity to address any questions or concerns you had after your urgent care facility, as well as allow your family physician to update your medical history.

Want to avoid unnecessary grief and expense when you get sick? Then you need this essential guide to the business behind your healthcare decisions. MyHealthSpin’s “Easy Healthcare: Before You Get Sick” ebook guide gives you all of the practical advice you need to take charge of your healthcare options!

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The post Why Urgent Care May Not Be Your Best Choice appeared first on MyHealthSpin.

Minor injuries can be dealt with at an urgent care. They typically have shorter wait times and you get in and out pretty quickly. Injuries that can be taken care of at an urgent care include UTIs, minor burns, insect and animal bites and wound infections.

More serious injuries warrant a trip to the emergency room. If your child falls out of a tree and breaks a bone, especially if it’s a compound fracture, you must take them to the ER. Breathing issues, allergic reactions and chest pain should also be treated in an emergency room. If you feel as though your loved one has a concussion you should take them to the ER immediately Signs of a concussion include loss of consciousness, nausea, vomiting, headaches and ringing in the ears.

Injuries sustained during sports, such as a sprained ankle, should be taken to the child’s primary care doctor first. Your doctor can determine the severity of the injury and the next steps that should be taken.

It can be difficult to determine the appropriate type of care for a specific injury but these tips should help you make a good decision on where to take your loved one.

For more healthcare tips for you and your family, check out my workbook for dealing with caring for your children as well as your aging parents: Life in Sandwich Generation. Life in the Sandwich Generation is a workbook filled with information, tips and tricks for managing the demands needing to care for your aging parents, as well as taking care of your children. It details how you can involve your children in the process, how to learn more about your parents health and finances, while still making time for yourself and your spouse. You can find it here for only $10!

The post Where To Go For Your Loved Ones Summer Injury appeared first on MyHealthSpin.

As we celebrate the holidays, many of us are traveling to be with family and friends.  With so many holiday activities, long care rides, and airplane trips, it’s easy to get tired, run down, and sick.  Not to mention the fact that all those cousins and friends you don’t see very often can give the gift of germs as easily as they can fruit cake.  So how should you handle getting sick on the road?

MyHealthSpin’s Easy Healthcare:  Before You Get Sick helps you figure out how to prepare prior to getting sick.  

First, generally you don’t get sick in an instant.  Most people are starting to feel sick prior to their travel date.  BE PROACTIVE!  Prior to leaving, assess how you are feeling and take action.  Do you need to see your doctor?  Do you need an antibiotic?  Is your child getting an ear infection?  Planning ahead is the best plan.

If you get sick on the road without warning, make sure you have your doctor’s contact information so you will be able to ask for help.  Should you come home or go to a doctor in the city you are visiting?  Make sure you don’t wait until Christmas Eve or New Year’s Day to call. Your doctor’s office won’t be open.

Of course, you should always have an established relationship with a primary care physician long before you travel.  If you do not have a primary care physician – a family practitioner or internist – you should find one while you’re healthy.  Preparation and planning can save you a lot of time and money.  You may end up going to the local ER or urgent care simply because you had no other plan for getting sick while out of town.  Getting sick can ruin your holiday so having a plan for handling most illnesses on the road can help.  

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Want to avoid unnecessary grief and expense when you get sick? Then you need this essential guide to the business behind your healthcare decisions. MyHealthSpin’s “Easy Healthcare: Before You Get Sick” ebook guide gives you all of the practical advice you need to take charge of your healthcare options!

Available for download NOW!

The post To Grandma’s House We Go: Getting Sick on the Road appeared first on MyHealthSpin.

Many people are now using urgent care facilities instead of a primary care doctor.  If you’re one of them, think again.

Urgent care facilities seem to be popping up on every corner, and they can look like the perfect solution to a healthcare problem.  Urgent care centers are open after hours and on weekends.  For some, it could be cheaper and faster to go to an urgent care rather than an emergency room.  And people with high insurance deductibles believe it’s less expensive to go to an urgent care.  So, why not take advantage of these conveniences?

First, none of the healthcare providers at the urgent care facility will know you or your loved one.  The urgent care facility will not have your health history nor your family history.  The purpose of urgent care is to treat a problem quickly and get you “in and out.”  It is similar to a drive-thru fast food restaurant.  When you want great, healthy food prepared by a talented chef, do you go to the drive-thru for something that was made in 3 minutes?  No.  Isn’t your healthcare more important than picking up a quick burger to eat on the run?

When handling your healthcare, you need a physician who knows you and your family’s health history.  A new doctor can always ask you questions and write down the answers;  however, if they are unlikely to ever see you again, are they going to take the time necessary to really assess what’s going on?  Your healthcare needs are often complex.  For example, you need to be careful about drug interactions so just getting a quick prescription isn’t always a good answer.  An urgent care center is set up for the quick fix, not complex problems.

Moonlighting staff. Additionally, many urgent care facilities are staffed by doctors who are moonlighting from their day jobs.  They might be very qualified; however, working at the urgent care is rarely their primary job.  Many times after a visit to urgent care, you don’t get better or you have questions the next day.  It’s very unlikely that you will be able to call the urgent care facility and talk to the doctor who saw you since he or she has returned to their day job.

Most people want great healthcare.  When you are sick is not the time to start with a doctor who does not know you.  Take charge of your healthcare:

1. Find a primary care doctor.
2. Know when your doctor’s office is open.   Don’t wait until 7 p.m. on Friday evening to decide you need to see a doctor.
3. Know when your doctor’s office has Saturday or late night hours.
4. Ask your doctor if he or she is affiliated with an “after hours” clinic that will have access to your or your loved ones’ medical records, if you must go to the doctor when your primary doctor’s office is closed.
5. Plan ahead when possible.  If you are feeling badly on Monday, call the doctor’s office before the office is closed for the weekend.

And most of all, establish a good relationship with a primary care doctor. It’s the best place to start to take charge of your healthcare.

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Want to avoid unnecessary grief and expense when you get sick? Then you need this essential guide to the business behind your healthcare decisions. MyHealthSpin’s “Easy Healthcare: Before You Get Sick” ebook guide gives you all of the practical advice you need to take charge of your healthcare options!

Available for download NOW!

The post Going to an Urgent Care Facility – Think Again! appeared first on MyHealthSpin.