Have You Had You Flu Shot Yet This Year?

Flu season has arrived, and as people across the nation prepare for the cold winter months, a number of them will be looking for places where they can get their flu shots. And while some patients will get their shots when they visit their family physician or pediatrician, others will visit a 24 hour urgent care location. As an affordable and convenient option, a 24 hour urgent care location is an increasingly popular spot.
Whether you are looking for a flu shot or treatment for minor injuries and illnesses, a walk-in urgent care clinic is a place to get the care that you need. From imaging labs to itchy eyes, these convenient clinics can provide both diagnostic services and prescriptions. In addition to yearly flu shots, consider some of these reasons that people visit convenient 24 hour urgent care locations:

• Statistics indicate that Urgent care clinics average seven exam or treatment rooms.
• The best urgent care settings are convenient, affordable, and reliable.
• After hour pediatric offices are busy locations during the official cold and flu seasons.
• You need to be able to get the care that you need, even if it is in the evening or on the weekend. Finding a nearby urgent care clinic is often the most affordable and convenient solution.
• In the year 2009, 1,083 medical school seniors selected Family Medicine. This number was lower than the 1,172 who selected Family Medicine as their specialty in the year 2008.
• Nothing is more frustrating than having a sick child and not knowing where you can go for the treatment that you need.
• Getting the care that you need is a way to make sure that you are looking forward to your future health. By getting a flu shot, for instance, you can avoid a later illness as the winter progresses.






• Headaches, stomach aches, and other minor illnesses are easily treated in a walk-in health clinic.
• Emergency room visits now number approximately 110 million a year.
• A group of physicians or a single physician owns approximately 50% of the urgent care centers in the country.
• Lately, more and more Americans has access to health insurance through the Affordable Care Act. As this trend continues, Americans will likely continue to rely heavily on the 24-hour access to care provided by emergency departments. In fact, AD visits have increased by 22% over the last 10 years.
• There are as many as 9,300 stand-alone, walk-in urgent care centers in the U.S., and 50 to 100 new clinics open every year. This is a number, however, that fluctuates with corporate buy overs, consolidations, and expansions.
• Helath care providers offer a variety of platforms where they offer their pateints care.
• Yearly statistics indicate that 60% of all urgent care centers have a wait time of less than 15 minutes to see a physician or mid-level provider. In addition, 65% of all urgent care centers have a physician on-site at all times.

If you are looking for ways to make sure that you are STAYING HEALTHY this winter, you might decide to visit a neighborhood 24 hour urgent care location for the diagnosis and the treatment that you need.