side note: I have noticed quite a few of these Urgent-care centers pop-up all over the place in the Chicagoland area. There does seem to be a lack of oversight and accreditation though….will this cause issues in the future?

Chicago Tribune
by Judith Graham & Melissa Healy
But potential patients should evaluate their own symptoms and a center’s services, hours and staff credentials

When his 2 ½ -year-old daughter tripped at day care and cut her chin recently, Lance Moore didn’t take her to the emergency room at the nearest hospital. Instead he rushed her to an urgent-care center.

“I wanted her to get immediate attention,” said Moore, who’d been to the St. Charles center before and knew the doctor who gave his daughter five stitches. “He offered to call a plastic surgeon, although he said he didn’t think that was necessary,” said Moore, who lives in Carol Stream. “He did a real nice job.”

Urgent-care centers have been gaining ground in Illinois and across the country recently as an attractive medical option for time-pressed families trying to avoid spending hours in a hospital ER or days waiting for a doctor’s appointment.

Sometimes known as “docs in a box,” the centers offer walk-in medical services and extended hours to customers with sore throats, ear infections, sprained or fractured limbs, simple wounds and other non-life-threatening medical problems. Doctors provide the care, assisted by nurses, and generally X-ray and laboratory services are available. Most centers are open 365 days a year, and insurance policies cover most services.

This convenience-oriented format, started more than 20 years ago, is getting a boost as hospitals and private firms build new centers, responding in part to new competition from retail clinics in Walgreens, CVS and Wal-Mart stores. (more…)