The RAND study found 13.4 percent of ED visits could be treated at an urgent care center and 13.7 percent in a retail clinic, but those amounts fall to 9 and 8 percent when typical hours of operation are factored in.
Retail clinics in pharmacies or grocery stores are staffed by nurse practitioners and treat a limited range of health conditions such as sore throats or urinary tract infections. Urgent care centers are freestanding facilities that are staffed by physicians, treat a broader range of conditions, and offer onsite x-rays and laboratory testing.
The RAND researchers analyzed profiles of visitors to retail medical clinics and urgent care centers and compared them to profiles of patients visiting EDs in 2006.
Read the RAND release on EDs.
Read more on EDs, urgent care centers and retail clinics.
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