Urgent care facility for a flare up?

[Josh1]

Hello,

Friday evening was the beginning of a flare up of my UC. This morning and last night have been pretty rough. It's nothing I need to go to the hospital for or anything, just a lot of D and stomach pain. I had to call in to work today out of fear of what might happen there. In situations like this in the past, I have called my GI and he has prescribed me prednisone. But his office isn't open on Sunday and I'd really like to get this taken care of ASAP so I can feel better and get back to work.

If I go to a 24/7 urgent care office or another doctor that's open, is there anything they could do for me? I can't imagine I could just walk in, tell him the situation, and get a prednisone prescription. At the same time, I'm not asking for Vicodin or anything. Does anyone have any experience with this? I don't mind giving it a shot, but I also don't want to waste time and money. Or is there anything I could possibly take in for proof of my situation?

Thanks!

 

[nogutsnoglory]

If they gave you anything it would be very little till you see your regular doc. It's probably just waiting out till tomorrow.

 

[Josh1]

If they gave you anything it would be very little till you see your regular doc. It's probably just waiting out till tomorrow.

Yeah that's pretty much what I expected. Thanks.

 

[SarahBear]

I agree with NGNG; urgent care is unlikely to do anything more than try to help you last until a doctor appointment. ER might be a little more useful, as they're likely to give you IV fluids as well, but they can also be very unhelpful.

Were you able to get in contact with your GI?

 

[Josh1]

I agree with NGNG; urgent care is unlikely to do anything more than try to help you last until a doctor appointment. ER might be a little more useful, as they're likely to give you IV fluids as well, but they can also be very unhelpful.

Were you able to get in contact with your GI?

Thanks for the reply. I hadn't really considered the ER since my flare up isn't too bad, but it's a good idea for the future. I called my GI this morning and his assistant fit me in for Wednesday. It wasn't the quick fix I was hoping for, but she wanted me to see him first this time since I haven't been in for awhile. But as long as the flare up gets knocked down, I'll take it.

 

[GutlessWonder86]

I went to an Urgent Care 3 weeks ago on a Sat. due to a very painful abdominal abscess.
I was hoping that the MD would drain it but she said based upon my complicated medical history she wasn't going to touch me. WHAT?? Can't you see the swollen abscess? Then she tells me it's too soon to lance but gave me a script for Amoxicillin saying it should get rid of the lump and to follow up with my surgeon.

Well, the Amoxicilllin did squat and my surgeon said that I have to have surgery AGAIN to find out where the abscess tract is and what kind of infection I have. LUCKY ME!!! NOT!!

The abscess did open and drain the next day after I went to Urgent Care and then it filled up again but is draining. Still no fever but I'm just irked that I keep on having these infections. I've decided next time to just head to the ER. Urgent Care was a joke.

 

[2thFairy]

The only other thing I can add is that if you do decide to go to the ER or another urgent care facility, take all of your current meds with you so they can see you are actively being treated for UC and proof of the prescribing doctor. It may not matter, but it's worth a shot.

 

[Josh1]

Urgent Care was a joke.

This is pretty much what I've learned from the past too. When I was first having my symptoms, I went to an urgent care clinic to see what was going on, and they took a stool sample. About a week later I got a voicemail that basically said "You seem fine to me! Good luck!" I had to just do research on my own to see what was going on and luckily I found a good GI who knew what he was doing.

Ever since then I've avoided those types of places, but I was hoping I could get away with them understanding and giving me a prescription to something I know will help. I glad I didn't waste the time and money though.

 

[Josh1]

take all of your current meds with you so they can see you are actively being treated for UC and proof of the prescribing doctor.

I was considering this, but with everything being done electronically these days, there's not much to take. My Remicade prescription goes straight to the pharmacy. I could take a bottle of Lomotil, which proves pretty much nothing. Maybe a bill from my GI, but that's about it. You'd think with everything being electronic, the process would be seamless, but sometimes it can just make it worse.

 

[2thFairy]

Good point. I didn't think about that.

 

[LindaS]

My only successful Urgent Care visit for my Crohn's was they referred me to the ER, so I was expedited there and didn't have to wait for hours. Otherwise, they don't help.

 

[GutlessWonder86]

hi 2th, I always carry a computer printout of all my meds and medial hx. this way, they know what I'm on. I update everything monthly as my meds change. Also, this UC I went to is associated with the medical group my surgeon belongs to so they have all of my info in their system.

 

[2thFairy]

hi 2th, I always carry a computer printout of all my meds and medial hx. this way, they know what I'm on. I update everything monthly as my meds change.

I do too. My thinking was that if they see an actual bottle of recent meds (since they don't know you), they may be more inclined to take you seriously at the urgent care places. I suppose it ultimately doesn't matter. I hate those places!

 

[Cat-a-Tonic]

I agree with most of what's been said already - Urgent care is good for some things (I go there whenever I need IV fluids, as they're faster & cheaper than the ER), but for most issues related to IBD, they're somewhat worthless.

Going off on a bit of a tangent here, but about a year ago, I was rear-ended. Some teenage kid was texting or whatever and he hit my car from behind. There wasn't really any damage to the cars, so we exchanged insurance info and went on our ways. My neck started hurting a couple hours later though, so I figured I had better go get checked out for whiplash. I went to Urgent Care, and apparently stuff like that is exactly what they are geared for. All I had to say was, "I was rear-ended and my neck hurts" and they rushed out to put a collar on me, got me right in a room to see a doctor, I had x-rays done 5 minutes later and got a diagnosis (it was whiplash) and meds all within like 30 minutes tops. It was like a well-oiled machine for that type of situation. So I do see the merit of Urgent Care for a truly "urgent" but not life-threatening situation like that. The trouble with chronic illness is, they don't really see it as being urgent and oftentimes they kind of throw their hands up in the air and don't know how to help. Yes, they can run bloodwork and prescribe some meds and give IV fluids, so if you only need that type of stuff then it's worth a trip. But like I said, I usually only go there when I need fluids, and even then they sometimes question me ("Are you sure you're dehydrated?").

 

[2thFairy]

I would slightly differ here. Last week my friend had an acute migraine attack. rather taking him to a hospital, I took him to Texan Urgent Care in San Antonio. The doctors gave him immediate assistance. we were even shocked at the bill. It was less than half of what we would have been spending at an ER. I always prefer going to urgent care.

It all depends on why you are going to see them. I've had very positive experiences and very negative experiences. Also, they vary greatly from one facility to the next, town to town, etc.

 

[nogutsnoglory]

The key word is "acute" and crohns is a chronic disease and when it rains it pours (no pun) so a flare is needing continued treatment that a specialist ought to provide and monitor.

Urgent care could give steroids or pain killers but will only treat the immediate symptoms and not the underlying disease.

 

[2thFairy]

Also:

Welcome to the forum, KelcieLe!

 

[Johnnysmom]

My son's GI prescribed Prednisone over the phone on a Saturday while we were vacationing in Florida. I would call the GI on call and discuss if you think it can't wait until office hours. If they have seen you recently or are familiar with your current status, they may be able to handle things over the phone and connect once the office is open.

Are adult GI's available on call? My son's pediatric GI always has someone on call after hours. Just wondering if things are different once they switch to an adult Dr.

 

[The Real MC]

I have been prescribed prednisone in the ER during non-office hours. If you're experiencing a really bad flareup, don't wait. The longer you wait, the worse the damage. The last time I waited too long, I needed surgery. Stitch in time saves nine is the rule here.

My ER copay is $100, no more. Just got the bill from my ER visit a few weeks ago. Varies with insurance policy though.

 

[scrapr]

My ER copay is $100, no more

jeebus. That is low. Almost go there for a cold than the Urgent care. Our copay for ER is supposed to be $500. Last two times we have gone it's been $1000. They bill $1k. Pay $100. Rest is the balance due. Something is wrong here