The holidays are coming up fast and it is such a great time of year. Kids playing and having fun in the snow, people wrapping presents and going to holiday parties, and so many other festive activities to enjoy. So what do you do if you find yourself in pain, short of breath or suddenly very ill during the holidays? Time for a trip to a 24 hour walk in clinic. But what can they help with and what is the difference between immediate care and emergency care?
If you find yourself suffering from abdominal pain it could be a number of different issues some of which are simple to fix and others may need emergency care. You may be constipated which is causing you discomfort and in this case you will be given a laxative and sent home. If you are suffering from an unexplained pain near your hip that makes it so you cannot even move this could be something severe like appendicitis which requires surgery and cannot be overlooked. Many times the doctors will give you an ultrasound to check out your internal organs to ensure everything is OK or not. There are many abdominal pain causes which could lead doctors to problems which you never even knew you had. If the problem persists you will want to seek care before you end up in the hospital over the holidays.
Headaches can be quite common during the holidays as well. Some of which may be caused due to stress, noise around you from shopping in busy malls, dehydration, or other simple problems. If you find yourself suffering from a headache that doesn’t go away and causes you to feel nauseous or dizzy it may need emergency care treatment. There are many different problems with your spine, jaw and head that can cause you to have headaches which are less severe. The doctors may order a CAT scan to find out if there are any other serious conditions causing your head to ache. You may start in immediate care and get placed into the emergency room depending on what the doctor finds. Only three percent of patients that head to urgent care centers are placed into emergency care.
When seeking care for your ailment it can be a challenge to decipher whether or not it is an emergency situation or just an immediate care type problem. Luckily there are clinics that are serving both emergency care and urgent care to provide convenient care for everyone.
