You should know the difference between an emergency room and urgency care because they tend to be constantly confused. Understanding this difference is critical in the care that the person receives; it can save a life in some cases.
The emergency room is intended for patients in danger of losing their lives, critical situations, or who require exceptional care; urgency care attends to people who need immediate attention but who are not at risk of dying. To help you a little more, here are some examples.
- Symptoms to visit the emergency room: Severe chest pain, shortness of breath, abdominal pain, sudden and severe pain, fractures, motor vehicle accidents, fever, heart attack, bleeding, head injury, or blow to the head.
- Symptoms to visit urgent care: A sprain, fever or cold or flu-like symptoms, allergic reactions, minor burns or injuries, cough, sore throat, colds, animal bites.
Urgency care have limited medical equipment, x-rays, and lab tests but no MRI and ultrasound machines shared in an emergency room. To give you a better idea of the conditions that can be treated in an emergency room, here is a list of the essential medical equipment that every emergency room should have on hand.
Patient monitors or vital signs monitors
It is a device used to measure the vital signs of patients. It provides readings on the LCD or CRT (liquid crystal display) screen using different indicators, whether letters, numbers, curved or linear graphics, symbols, etc. Please consider that this equipment must have a medical cable suitable for the rough use that an emergency room implies, as well as a precise adjustment that guarantees its good operation.
Surgical and examination lamps
The light must offer sufficient intensity in the working field, but from lamps that are not large emitters of heat to avoid increasing the place’s temperature. It should be white to avoid alterations in the appreciation of the coloration of the tissues. Halogen or LED lamps are regularly used because they offer the best characteristics.
Electrocardiographs
The electrocardiograph is unquestionable medical equipment that must work perfectly, so the medical cable must be adjusted to perfection. It is usually necessary to have more than one of these devices available if several patients require it at the same time.
Anesthesiology devices
Several studies, medical and surgical treatments involve the use of anesthesia. This medical device or machine performs the task of accurately and continuously delivering anesthesia medical gases to patients at an appropriate level. Today’s anesthesia machines have additional tools such as a ventilator, suction units, and patient monitoring screens.
Patient beds
In a hospital, there is always a maximum capacity of beds, stretchers, operating tables, tables for examining patients, etc., and all of them must always be in optimal conditions to be used when required.
Sterilizers
The sterilization method for hospital objects is usually by autoclave. The environment in a hospital must, above all, be safe for patients; sterilizers allow to eliminate the threats posed by bacteria, killing all forms of microbial life, fungi, viruses, and other entities that may be around surgical instruments and other medical devices.
Currently, the hospital world has sterilizers such as the autoclave, responsible for sterilizing equipment and supplies with saturated steam and pressure for a short period.
