A fun day of basketball has turned into a disaster because you have rolled your ankle. You need medical attention to ensure you are not on the sidelines for a long period of time. In order to feel better quicker, consider using the services of a doctors urgent care facility.

Urgent care represents the next boom in the medical industry. An estimated 75% of Urgent Care facilities in the United States are found in suburban areas. Urgent care centers offer excellent hours for their clients as 70% of the centers open by 8 a.m. and 95% close after 7 p.m. There are several different urgent care criteria including be open 7 days a week and must accept walk-in patients during business hours. Urgent Care centers began opening and becoming popular in the United States during the 1970s. This sector of the healthcare industry continues to grow as there are around 10,000 centers nationally.

It is not just hypochondriacs who are visiting urgent care centers. There are an estimated 160 million urgent care center visits annually in the United States. In 2012, the most common diagnosis given at urgent care centers in the United States was an upper respiratory infection. Sports injuries and flu-like symptoms are also among the most treated conditions at an urgent care center. Urgent care facilities are staffed by a physician and supported by nurses, physician assistants and medical assistants. Sixty-five percent of urgent care centers have at least one physician on-site at all times.

For injuries and illness not considered life threatening it is recommended that patients attend urgent care, not the emergency room. Urgent Care facility visits typically charge a co-pay relative to what a doctor would charge, and are significantly less expensive than visits to the emergency room. A visit to a doctors urgent care center costs just over $100, while a trip to the emergency room trip costs on average of $560. The wait for an urgent care is far quicker than the emergency room. The wait in a doctors urgent care center is only about 30 minutes, while it can be hours before you see the emergency room doctor.

A doctors urgent care center can help you recover from your injury quicker. Urgent care facilities employ board certified physicians and a talented support staff. Check out a doctors urgent care center and get back in the game quicker. Research more here: www.immediateclinic.com