Four ways to prepare for an Urgent Care visit

Cape Cod Healthcare Urgent Care centers are distinct in that they are staffed by emergency medicine-trained doctors, physician assistants, nurse practitioners and nurses, which allows for quick diagnosis and treatment of most illnesses and injuries. Because of their expertise in treating a wide range of conditions, ninety-five percent of patients are in and out in less than an hour.

That streamlined approach carries over to the patient side as well. If you need to be seen at urgent care, there are four things you can do to help your visit be as efficient as possible, explained Joe Camelio, executive director for Cape Cod Healthcare Urgent Care.

What You Can Do

• Check online urgent care wait times on the Cape Cod Healthcare website. “It’s obviously subject to change, and it can change very quickly because we’re not appointment based, but you can at least get a sense of the status,” he said. “Patients are triaged based on the time they check into a clinic and the severity of their complaint. As acuity trumps time every time, you may not always be seen in the exact order of your arrival,” he said. “So, if a patient comes in and they're having chest pain, and there's somebody in the other room that's having a sore throat, we're going to see that patient that's having chest pain before the person with a sore throat.” Timing may also be affected the severity of the condition or illness. For example, a patient reporting flu-like symptoms will require more resources and testing, su ch as a chest X-ray, than those who have a tick bite. About 5 percent of patients require treatment beyond what urgent care can provide, so the staff arranges for transfer to a hospital department he said.
• Make sure you bring any required documents, including identification and insurance information, even if you think it might be in the system.
• Bring an up-to-date list of all your medications or throw them in a plastic bag and bring them. That avoids the additional step of clinicians having to call the pharmacy or primary care physician’s office to verify prescriptions.
• Consider when urgent care is the answer and when it’s not. If you think the situation is an emergency or have chest or abdominal pain, call 911 or go to your closest emergency center. “Understand what’s appropriate for urgent care,” Camelio said. “I think it’s something patients get confused about, or they don’t want to go to the emergency department. We want to make sure we are getting people to where they need to be.”

Upon arrival at urgent care, patients also have the option to wait in their cars and receive a text or call when a room is ready.

Being prepared for an urgent care visit can lead to a more streamlined, satisfying experience, all the while knowing you are being cared for by a highly trained and experienced team.