Urgent Care or Emergency Room? Know When to Go

An urgent care center does not deliver the same level of medical care that you can get at an emergency room. But how do you know when to go to a walk-in urgent care clinic or when you should head for the nearest ER?

The basic rule of thumb: If your condition is life-threatening, go to the ER. If you’d typically go to see your primary-care doctor about your symptoms, but you just can’t wait, an urgent care visit is the right choice.

Sarasota Memorial’s Urgent Care Centers can provide immediate, comprehensive treatment for non-life threatening illnesses and injuries, as well as basic healthcare services for patients older than 3 months. The urgent cares also provide immunizations and have on-site X-ray and lab testing, including COVID-19 testing. But, they do not have the life-saving equipment that is available in emergency rooms and trauma centers like Sarasota Memorial Hospital, nor can they provide emergency surgery.

If you are experiencing signs of a stroke, heart attack or other life-threatening condition, call 9-1-1 or go straight to the ER. If you’re experiencing chest pain, impaired consciousness, bleeding that won’t stop or difficulty breathing, call 9-1-1 and get to the hospital ER quickly.

Experiencing COVID-19 symptoms? Click here for guidance on seeking care for COVID-19 symptoms.

For other medical needs, consult the list.

Go to an Urgent Care Center for:
  • Non-life-threatening illnesses or injuries, such as—
    Allergies
  • Animal or insect bites, including tick removal or stings from jellyfish or a stringray
  • Bone fractures or simple breaks
  • Bronchitis
  • Congestion, nasal and chest
  • Cough and cold
  • Diarrhea
  • Ear infection
  • Fever
  • Flu
  • Immunizations
  • Minor burns, cuts or bleeding that may require stitches
  • Pink eye
  • Rashes
  • Sinus infection
  • Sore throat
  • Sprains / strains
  • Strep throat
  • TB Tests
  • Upper respiratory infection
  • Urinary tract infections
  • Vomiting that isn’t constant
Go to the Emergency Room for:
  • True medical emergencies and traumas, or medical conditions that require immediate treatment between 8 p.m. and 8 a.m.
  • Heart attack symptoms: Chest pain, any suspicion of heart ailment, heart irregularity
  • Stroke symptoms: Weakness on one side, tingling, numbness, facial drooping
  • Abdominal pain
  • Bleeding that won’t stop
  • Blood in stool
  • Coughing blood or vomiting blood
  • Debilitating headache
  • Dehydration (weakness, no longer sweating, no urination in 12 hours, confusion, dizziness, nausea)
  • Falls while pregnant
  • Head injuries
  • High fever
  • Infant care, any symptoms if patient is younger than 3 months old
  • Seizures
  • Severe burns / cuts / wounds
  • Severe injury / trauma
  • Shortness of breath / gasping / respiratory distress
  • Slurred speech
  • Sudden paralysis
  • Vaginal bleeding with pregnancy
  • Visible fracture / broken bones / dislocation
  • Vomiting that won’t stop
 
Urgent Care for Children

When deciding whether to take a child (older than 3 months) to urgent care or the ER, assess how responsive the child is.

  • If your child is still answering questions coherently and making eye contact, they generally can be seen at an urgent care.
  • If a child is in respiratory distress, vomiting to point of lethargy, having seizures or suffered a head injury, call 911 and get them to the ER as soon as possible.
  • If your child is not responsive or is lethargic from a fever, get them to the ER—no matter what the thermometer says. If the fever is under 101.5 and the child is acting normally, an urgent care visit likely will suffice.