Since the year 2013, there have been more than 20 rural hospitals that have shut down across the United States. Unless you are someone that lives in a rural area then this probably seems like it is no big deal but for the people in that community, it is damaging to their quality of life. Without hospitals, it is harder for these people to have access to legitimate health care.
By the time we reach the year 2020, the United States will be short 90,000 physicians and when we reach 2025, we will be short 130,000 physicians, according to projections by the Association of American Medical Colleges. The only way this can be changed is if people prioritize the expansion of the 24 hour walk in clinic. The 24 hour walk in clinic is believed to be a bad place by many, but that is just because they believe lies.
On average, a 24 hour walk in clinic will have just about seven exam/treatment rooms for patients. Many people believe that urgent care clinics are just lesser versions of an emergency room that is unequipped to handle serious issues. This is not true and the same can be said for many of the false facts that surround the local 24 hour walk in clinic. Here are all of the facts on emergency centers, pediatric urgent care, and family urgent care.
The 24 Hour Walk In Clinic Is Reliable
A private study was conducted recently and it revealed that just about 65% of all emergency room episodes could have easily been treated in an 24 hour walk in clinic. A lot of people seem to believe that a 24 hour walk in clinic is the same as an emergency room and that they both act in the same way but this is not true. Understand that they both treat the same issues but one is much cheaper and this will be discussed later in the article.
Right now, more than half of all urgent care centers are owned by one physicians or a group of physicians. Right now there are over 9,300 walk-in clinics that are opened and up for business and there are just about 50 to 100 new clinics opening every single year. Almost all urgent care centers are open seven days a week and at a minimum are open every single day for at least four hours.
According to Health Care Appraisers, the urgent care center market is broken up and that most operators only own fewer than three centers so it is hard for one person to dominate the market. There are just about 20,000 physicians working int he field of Urgent Care Medicine right now and that number is projected to grow. More and more medical workers are beginning to realize how important this line of work is.
The 24 Hour Walk In Clinic Is Inexpensive
Right now there are more than 110 million emergency room visits that happen each year. Unfortunately, many Americans go to the emergency room and are treated for illnesses that could easily be handled at a 24 hour walk in clinic, as mentioned earlier in this article. While it may seem like this is not a serious issue it leads to many people wasting money at an emergency room.
When an urgent care-treatable case is handled in a hospital emergency room it will cost an average of over $2,000 and when that same case is treated in an urgent care facility, it would end up costing an average of $226. If people were to seek out help and treatment from a 24 hour walk in clinic, it could save up to $4 billion a year in health costs.
In Conclusion
There is no doubt that people should be more open to receiving treatment from urgent care and clinics because there are many benefits in doing so. The biggest benefit stems directly from saving a large amount of money that is wasted when someone visits an emergency room with an illness that could be treated by a walk-in clinic.