You have a kidney stone. Or need stitches. Or have intense back pain. When you need help now, but your doctor’s office is booked or closed for the day, is it better to go to the emergency room (ER) or look for a nearby urgent care clinic?

The right choice often depends on the seriousness of your symptoms or injury. Here, we guide you through how to make the best decision so you can get the right level of care. Read on to learn when to go to the ER vs. urgent care.

Urgent care clinics treat mild to moderate illnesses and injuries

Urgent care is best when you or your family have a minor health problem that can’t wait until tomorrow. Most urgent care locations are open evenings, weekends and holidays, and treat a wide variety of non-severe illnesses and injuries.

There are two types of urgent care clinics: Standard urgent cares and orthopedic urgent cares. Choosing the best one for you mostly depends on the type of illness or injury you have.

Go to standard urgent care for common illnesses, infections and minor burns

Standard urgent cares have clinicians who specialize in treating children and adults for a range of everyday illnesses and injuries, including:

  • Colds, influenza, sinus infections and strep throat
  • Cuts and scrapes
  • Ear infections
  • Hives, rashes and skin infections
  • Minor injuries and burns
  • Pink eye, styes and eye infections

While you may need to wait to be seen at an urgent care, it’s usually faster than going to the emergency room. And depending on your location, urgent cares tend to be more conveniently located than hospital emergency rooms. For example, HealthPartners and Park Nicollet have more than 20 urgent care locations across Minnesota and western Wisconsin.

Go to orthopedic urgent care for bone fractures, sprains and similar injuries

While standard urgent care clinics can handle minor sprains and strains, orthopedic urgent cares can treat all injuries related to your bones, muscles, ligaments and joints, including:

  • Broken bones
  • Bruises
  • Cuts
  • Dislocations
  • Sprains, strains, and ligament and muscle tears
  • Sports-related concussions

The type of clinician you see, and the services offered at orthopedic urgent care, can vary by the health system. Most often, athletic trainers or physician assistants treat patients. But at our TRIA orthopedic urgent care clinics, you’ll be seen by a medical doctor, and in many cases, your doctor can follow you through the course of your care. Plus, you have access to same-day physical therapy, imaging and orthopedic surgeons if needed.

Emergency rooms treat major health problems

Emergency rooms are where you go for unexpected, major health issues. That’s why emergency rooms are usually open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. If you have a life-threatening emergency and need help right away, call 911.

Emergency rooms treat health issues like:

  • Bleeding you can’t stop
  • Chest pain or shortness of breath
  • Loss of bladder function
  • Major injuries and burns
  • Poisoning
  • Pregnant women in labor
  • Severe allergic reactions
  • Severe stomach pain
  • Sudden loss of feeling in your legs
  • Sudden spike in pain, discomfort, weakness or numbness in any part of your body

Other factors to consider when choosing the ER vs. urgent care

Urgent care costs less than the emergency room

At the emergency room, your costs usually add up quicker than at standard or orthopedic urgent care.

  • If you have insurance and already met your deductible, the amount you’ll pay varies by insurance plan. However, emergency care generally costs a lot more than standard or orthopedic urgent care. The price also goes up if you have coinsurance.
  • If you haven’t met your deductible or don’t have insurance, you’ll have to pay for some or all of your visit. So if it makes sense for the health problem you’re experiencing, try to go where costs tend to run lower. And for things that can wait a day or two, try to go to your primary care doctor.

An “urgency center” isn’t always the same as an urgent care

While it may sound like urgent care, it’s usually not. Urgency centers are often freestanding emergency rooms. And on average, they cost upwards of twice the price of urgent care.

Some urgent cares may have a “Save my Spot” option

When you arrive at an urgent care, you’ll likely need to wait a little bit to see a clinician. And while urgent care waits are usually shorter than emergency room waits, spending hours in a waiting room isn’t fun for most people.

The good news is that some urgent cares offer a way to get in line before you even leave your house. For example, all of our standard urgent care and orthopedic urgent care locations offer “Save My Spot,” which can be accessed on our website. When you use “Save My Spot” you let us know you’re coming, and when you arrive, you don’t need to wait at the back of the line.

Your clinic’s nurse line and insurance company can be helpful resources

If you have health insurance, they might offer a phone line staffed by experts who can help you decide where to go for care. For example, if you’re a HealthPartners patient or insurance plan member, you can get free help. CareLine nurses are available 24/7 to help you figure out where you should go for care. Call CareLine at 800-551-0859. Check your insurance card for details specific to your insurance carrier.

Get the level of care you need when you need it

When you’re trying to decide between the emergency room or urgent care, the severity of your symptoms should be your guide. Mild or moderate illnesses and injuries go to urgent care or orthopedic urgent care, while severe health issues go to the ER. This helps ensure you get the right type of care as quickly as possible and at the lowest cost.