When should I seek emergency care for COVID-19?
How long will I have to wait for emergency care?
Is urgent care the same as an emergency room?
When should I go to urgent care?
When should I go to the Emergency Room?
What is the term used for prioritizing emergency care?
What is emergency care?
Are all emergency departments the same?

 

When should I seek emergency care for COVID-19?

Answer: Although COVID-19 isn’t always deadly, it can be dangerous if the symptoms are severe. If you have COVID-19 and have difficulty breathing, persistent pain or pressure in the chest, are confused, cannot wake up or stay awake, or have gray or blue discolored, it is an emergency, and they should call 911 immediately.

How long will I have to wait for emergency care?

Answer:  While our emergency department wait times are relatively short, wait depends on various factors, including the severity of the medical condition and the number of patients currently in the ED.  So that we can provide appropriate prompt care, patients are seen by order of severity of their condition.

Is urgent care the same as an emergency room?

Answer: The short answer is no. An urgent care facility will be for mild to moderate illnesses or injuries that won’t result in your death or loss of a limb but can’t be put off until you see a regular doctor; you should go to an urgent care provider.  

If the situation is a life or death illness or injury or is an injury that could result in the loss of a limb, it is considered an emergency and should be handled in an emergency room.

When should I go to urgent care?

Answer:  It’s often hard to know whether to go to an urgent care center or the emergency room.  With the symptoms below, you should  go to Urgent Care:

• Fever without a rash
• Running nose
• Sore throat
• Mild Asthma
• Moderate flu-like symptoms
• Sprains and strains
• Minor cuts that may require stitches
• X-ray
• Back pain
• Earache

When should I go to the emergency room?

Answer:  In the case of any life-threatening emergency or critical care event, you should immediately dial 911 or head to the closest Emergency Room.  Symptoms that indicate when to go to the Emergency Room:

•  Chest pain or difficulty breathing
• Weakness or numbness on one side of the body
• Slurred speech
• Fainting or change in mental state
• Serious burns
• Head or eye injury – concussion or confusion
• Broken bones and dislocated joints
• Fever with a rash
• Seizure
• Severe cuts that may require stitches

What is the term used for prioritizing emergency care?

Answer:  The term used when an establishment has to prioritize the amount of care they can provide is triage. Triage is the assignment of degrees of urgency to wounds or illnesses to decide the order of people that need care the most will be treated while others will have to wait.

What is emergency care?

Answer: Emergency care is when a person needs life or death treatment as soon as possible to avoid death or the loss of limbs. Healthcare systems around the nation provide emergency room services for people who have become deathly ill, have been in catastrophic accidents, or have been severely injured.

Are all emergency departments the same?

Answer: While all EDs can stabilize the most critical patients, other services like neurology, cardiology, and GI services may require a transfer to another hospital with specialists on-hand to help patients with specific health issues.