When you have a family, you obviously care about their health and well-being. In addition to taking them in for routine check-ups at family health care clinics, you may also need to visit an after hours urgent care facility on occasion.

There are a variety of health care concerns that might arise for you and your family. If any members of your family are elderly, for example, these might include depression, memory loss, and various forms of dementia, such as Alzheimer’s. Other serious issues that may arise include skin cancer.

If you have a primary care physician, and are enrolled in one or more family health care plans, it’s likely that you feel confident that you and your family will receive the care you need. If you don’t have a regular physician or a health care plan, then it’s important to know that there are emergency walk in clinics available.

As you’re probably aware, the cost of visiting an urgent care clinic is much less than visiting a traditional hospital emergency room. The Medical Expenditure Panel Survey, for example, indicates that it may cost $1,318 for an emergency room visit.

When you or a member of your family is experiencing a life-threatening issue, you definitely want to go to the hospital. Non life-threatening situations, however, can be treated at an urgent care clinic where you will receive expert care.

When you’re sick with the flu, have a minor wound or burn, or are in pain due to a chronic condition,you don’t want to endure a long wait to see a doctor. When you visit a medical walk in clinic, your waiting time is much less than for a traditional emergency room.

The waiting time at emergency room increased from 46.5 minutes to 58.1 minutes during 2003 to 2009. Currently, this waiting time may be longer and will depend on a number of factors, which includes the number of people in the waiting room, the severity of their issues, and the number of available medical personnel on duty.

If you haven’t done so yet, it would be a good idea to conduct a primary care physician search in your area. Once you locate a neighborhood health clinic that provides family health care, you will be aware of where to go should you or anyone in your family need access to medical care.