Urgent Care Services - Symptoms, Conditions and Treatments at Urgent Care Centers (2024)

Key Points

• Urgent care centers provide a range of medical services including treatment of non-emergent health conditions, diagnostics, and routine items like vaccinations.
• Common conditions treated at urgent care centers include allergic reactions, cuts, burns, sprains, colds, flu, and more.
• Most urgent care centers offer lab services similar to those provided in emergency rooms or by primary care doctors, including COVID-19 tests, blood tests, STD tests, and pregnancy tests.
• Routine services such as vaccinations, physicals, gynecologic exams, and drug screenings are also offered by urgent care facilities.
• Urgent care centers can also treat unexplained symptoms like rashes, coughing, body and muscle aches, nausea, and headaches. However, they are not equipped to handle life-threatening conditions, for which emergency services should be contacted.

What Conditions Are Treated at Urgent Care?

The biggest service offered by urgent care facilities is the treatment of common, non life-threatening illnesses and injuries. In general, the things that are treated in urgent care facilities include:

• Allergic reactionsand asthma
• Cuts, burns, bug bites and animal bites
• Falls, sprains, strains, and broken bones
• Colds and flus
• Pink eye
• Ear infections
• Sinus pressure and sinus infections (sinusitis)
• Bronchitis and strep throat

Do Urgent Care Centers ProvideLab Services?

Most urgent care centers offer a variety of lab services to better diagnose and help patients. Lab services may be in conjunction with other treatment procedures, diagnostics, and more. The laboratory services offered through an urgent care facility are the same type of services that are offered in an emergency room or through your primary care doctor. Specifically, they include the following lab services:

• COVID-19Tests, COVID-19 AntibodyTests
• Blood tests including blood glucose,basic and comprehensive metabolic panels, complete blood counts, etc.
• Electrolyte testing
• STD tests
• Pregnancy tests
• Urinalysis
• Drug tests and screenings
• Fecal blood occult
• Flu tests and rapid flu tests
• Strep tests
• PT / INR tests

Do Urgent Care Centers Offer Preventative Health Services?

Urgent care centers also offer a variety of routine services for patients. These services can include many preventative or regular items. Some things included in the routine services offered by urgent care facilities are:

• Vaccinations and flu shots
• Physicals (DOT,school, sports, or annual)
• Gynecologic exams
• Drug screening
• Well baby checks
• And more

What Symptoms are Treated at Urgent Care?

Sometimes, you may not know exactly what is wrong. In this case, it is still a good idea to come to an urgent care facility if you are experiencing some of the following symptoms:

• Rashesanditching
• Coughing(anddry cough),sneezingand wheezing
• Sore throatand strep throat
• Body and muscle aches
• Nausea, diarrhea and vomiting
• Headaches
• Other unexplained pain or swelling

Do Urgent Care Centers Administer IVs and Medication?

Because the staff at all urgent care facilities are medical professionals – either doctors or nurse practitioners, they are able to give you the best medical advice and offerings available. In some cases, this may include items such as IVs and medication. This is on a case-by-case basis. If it is determined that you require a medication, a prescription and more information will be given to you. In addition, if you are dehydrated and require an IV, this will be explained and a medical professional will get this started.

Non Life-Threatening Conditions

It is crucial to remember that if you are encountering a life threatening condition, you need to call 911 or get to the emergency room. Urgent care facilities are generally not equipped to deal with these.

• burns
• asthma
• physicals
• medication
• urgent care