Using urgent care facilities is a whole lot more convenient than waiting in an emergency room when you have minor injuries or health concerns. In fact, over two thirds of all urgent care patients wait less than 15 minutes according to the Urgent Care Association of America. By selecting local urgent care, you can save significant time and stress from going to the emergency room for minor injuries.

When you are suffering from most minor illnesses or minor health issues, you can easily avoid hospital emergency room services by choosing after hours urgent care. The convenience of getting to see a nurse or doctor in minutes makes all of the difference when you are coming down with the flu or suffering from a nasty cold. How often have you found yourself feeling bad when your physicians office is not even open?

Estimates show that more than 30 percent of all U.S. ER visits might be better served in an after hours clinic that is also cheaper and more convenient. Generally, urgent care hours and locations are favorable, plus they have the diagnostic equipment for general lab work, xrays or testing on site. For sprains and lacerations, you can save hours by visiting urgent care versus the emergency room too.

One of the lesser known advantages of visiting urgent care facilities is their flexibility in scheduling things like vaccinations and sports physicals. For those that need a flu shot annually, you may face a wait if you schedule it with your primary care physician, but the doctors at the urgent care facility can provide them almost immediately. For parents that are required to annually complete childrens sports physicals, these can be scheduled and obtained relatively quickly.

What if there are not urgent care facilities in close proximity? The Urgent Care Association of America estimates increased and rapid expansion from the current 9,000 urgent care facilities. That means that your ability to get after hours care or minor emergency treatment will only get better as the facilities grow in number throughout the U.S. Get more on this here.