The Vital Role Of The Walk-In Clinic In America

Facing more than 110 million annual visits, emergency room doctors are busier than ever. While many of the patients they see are in need of urgent care, many of the visits aren’t for true emergencies. As such, wait times have grown in hospitals across the country, leading many to seek out more timely, convenient alternatives to the ER. It is no wonder the walk-in clinic has seen a remarkable resurgence as of late.
The Numbers
Since 2008, the number of urgent care facilities jumped from 8,000 to 9,300. In addition to long wait times at the ER, the growth of the walk-in clinic has been fueled by a steep reduction in the availability of primary care providers. According to a recent report, less than one-quarter of new doctors go into the primary care field. Because this record low in new doctors corresponds with a growing population, there is now a critical shortage of personal physicians. An inevitable result of this disparity is an increase in visits to both ERs and urgent care facilities.