Using the ER for primary care source is not as uncommon as you may think. Note, that another growing trend is using urgent care medical centers for primary care.
When Health Insurance Disappears
With the current economic crisis and the lack of a national health care program in the United States, more people are deciding to opt out of health care coverage. Not only are they unable to afford the premiums, but they might also not qualify for coverage due to a preexisting health condition. In the absence of health insurance, the emergency room becomes the place to go when you have a medical problem – big or small. You will be able to be seen by a doctor when it’s convenient for you (assuming you don’t want to go in the middle of the night when it’s busier) and you can be seen no matter what. You can not be turned away at an emergency room, which means you will get some sort of treatment and answer to your health worries – just as you might in a general practitioner’s office.
When Your Schedule Isn’t Accommodating
On the other hand, you might have great health insurance, but your doctor only has office hours on certain days, days that you work. So you might turn to the emergency room in your area to help you with basic health care needs. While this isn’t ideal, when you can’t see your doctor when you’re free, the ER becomes the only other alternative for basic checkups and routine tests.
Cheaper Prices in the ER
Still others feel that going to the ER is going to be cheaper than their traditional co-pay or to pay for health insurance – and they’re right most of the time. Instead of simply having regular doctor appointments, heading in for urgent issues seems to be cost effective for many people.
Problems with Primary Care in the ER
But while it might seem that getting health care is a good idea, no matter where you get it, if you’re heading to an emergency room and you don’t need to be in one, that can cause troubles for others in the room. Since you all need to be seen in the ER, you might be causing others who truly need help to have to wait longer. A visit from someone who does not have an urgent condition will be taking up the time of the doctors and nurses on staff, specialists who prefer to see the acute cases they are trained to assess.
Primary care does happen in the ER, but it seems that better health care coverage and more flexible scheduling could help to prevent this from becoming the norm.