When faced with a medical emergency, you obviously want what’s best for yourself or whoever needs to go. Going to the emergency room (ER) is by no means a poor decision. In fact, for life-threatening situations, it is recommended to head for an ER immediately. However, for less pressing issues that still require medical attention, urgent care centers are an appealing alternative.

There are about 9,000 urgent care centers in the country. To better understand what they do and why they are popular, here are three of the many benefits of going to an urgent care clinic:

1. They’re Fast: Walk in health clinics are well known for their swiftness. A good 69% of walk in medical clinics have an average wait time of 20 minutes or less; 28% are 40 minutes or less; and just 3% are more than 40 minutes. Anyone who has had to go to an ER know just how long wait times can be, especially during peak hours. Urgent care centers will get you in and out the door in no time.
2. They’re Cheap: Urgent care isn’t cheap per se but they are certainly more affordable than ERs. For the same treatment, the difference between an urgent care bill and a ER bill range from $228 to $583, on average. Urgent care units are especially favorable for patients with inadequate or no health insurance.
3. They’re Effective: Urgent care facilities have mostly the same tools and equipment as ERs. More than 95% of units have at least one physician on staff, and an overwhelming majority of them have the same tools and equipment as ERs. Though ERs may have better equipment for more serious injuries, urgent care units can take care of pretty much anything short of major trauma or otherwise life-threatening conditions.

For more information about urgent care, feel free to leave a comment or question at the bottom.