Urgent care services play a crucial role in providing accessible and timely medical assistance for non-life-threatening illnesses. New Zealand's healthcare system, known for its stunning scenery and vibrant culture, is no different in terms of providing high-quality care. This comprehensive article aims to give you a clear understanding of the urgent care options available in New Zealand, how they function, what to anticipate, and how to make the most of these services.

Urgent care is a medical specialty that provides prompt treatment for accidents and urgent medical issues in the community. Among the 36 fields of medicine recognized by the Medical Council of New Zealand, it is the 12th largest in terms of Fellow numbers, equivalent to orthopedic surgery and public health, and the second largest in terms of face-to-face patient consultations. The Royal New Zealand College of Urgent Care is responsible for ensuring medical training and maintaining professional standards in the field of urgent care.

Differences Between Urgent Care and Emergency Rooms

The main difference between urgent and emergency is that urgent is an adjective while emergency is a noun. An emergency is a significant and frequently deadly condition that requires rapid care. Urgent is a word that denotes something that requires quick action or attention. As a result, both of these terms have the same meaning. Their employment in sentences, however, differs because they belong to two distinct grammatical groups.

Urgent is a term used to describe something that needs immediate attention or action. It refers to things that are extremely important and require prompt action. When something is urgent, it must be dealt with quickly. The adverb form of urgent is also "urgent".

Emergencies are unforeseen, often fatal situations that require immediate action. Examples include accidents that require urgent intervention and sudden medical problems like strokes and heart attacks. Natural disasters like floods, earthquakes, wildfires, storms, and tsunamis also fall under emergency situations.

An emergency is a serious threat to life, health, property, or the environment. In such situations, we usually reach out to the police, fire department, or medical personnel. Similarly, an emergency ward is a hospital department that admits patients in need of immediate medical attention.

Why visit an urgent care center for medical treatment?

In certain situations, it is better to go to an urgent care clinic than to a hospital's emergency department. Urgent care clinics are equipped to handle medical emergencies that require immediate attention. On the other hand, emergency rooms should only be used for life-threatening medical issues, which are defined as emergency medical situations.

If someone needs urgent treatment and is unable to see their primary care doctors promptly, they can visit their local urgent care facility.

Urgent care clinics treat several diseases that are also treated in emergency rooms, and cities with such clinics have significantly lower emergency department attendance. Urgent care was recognized as a separate branch of healthcare for the first time in New Zealand, and it has the lowest per capita rate of emergency room visits among industrialized nations. Auckland has more urgent care clinics per capita than other areas of New Zealand and has much lower emergency room attendance rates.

Accredited urgent care clinics

Urgent care clinics are evaluated under the RNZCUC's Urgent Care Standard (UCS), which establishes and monitors equipment, staffing, processes, and policies. They have an agreement with ACC to offer emergency treatment.

Urgent care clinics offer medical services without the need for an appointment. Patients who arrive with severe injuries or illnesses are given immediate attention. These clinics operate seven days a week and are open from 8 a.m. until at least 8 p.m. Some are open 24 hours per day. They are equipped and staffed to handle emergency medical cases, accidents, as well as provide x-ray, fracture clinics, slit lamp for eye diseases, and advanced wound treatment services. Additionally, almost all urgent care clinics are accredited according to the RNZCUC's Urgent Care Standard, which ensures that equipment, personnel, processes, and procedures meet the required standards.

Urgent care clinics are frequently combined with pharmacy, physiotherapy, and dental services. Some hospitals have specialized clinics. Every three years, clinics are evaluated against the urgent care standard, with additional surveillance audits at the 18-month mark.  Clinics must notify ACC and RNZCUC if they are unable to meet the terms of their contract or UCS.  Dispensation is often provided for extremely brief periods of noncompliance if sufficient safety measures are in place.  When an appropriate medical director is not available, the clinic may be ordered to seek legal dispensation for specific criteria.

Types of Urgent Care Services

Nobody knows when an emergency medical situation will occur. Because the hours available to visit a primary care doctor are restricted, if an urgent care emergency arises outside of the hours available to visit a primary care provider, the patient must seek other medical assistance. While many individuals attend their local emergency department, there are better alternatives.

A summary of some of the more popular services that an urgent care facility can offer is shown below. Even while an urgent care facility is recognized for its urgent care offerings, many facilities also provide additional treatments that are not considered to be urgent.

Treatment for common colds, the flu - There are treatments available to address the wide range of cold and flu symptoms. Receiving urgent care services while they are unwell with a cold will be especially beneficial for those who have a chronic illness or a weakened immune system.

Treatment for stomachaches and ear infections - Urgent care treatments are frequently required for stomachaches and ear infections.

Treatment for minor injuries - Minor burns, minor lacerations, minor sprains, and minor fractures are just a few of the less serious conditions that an urgent care facility may treat.

When is it best to visit an urgent care?

Urgent care is the best option if you have a non-life-threatening sickness or injury that cannot wait until tomorrow. Symptoms may include, but are not limited to the following:

Bites, Coughs, Cuts, Dehydration, Diarrhea, Ear pain, Fever, Infections, Mild asthma, Minor burns, Nose bleeds, Rashes, Painful urination, Vomiting, Sore throat, Simple fractures, Sprains and Strains.

Information for medical students, trainees, and Fellows

Urgent care is a specialized branch of medicine that offers treatment for accidents and other urgent medical problems within the community. Among the 36 medical disciplines recognized by the Medical Council of New Zealand, urgent care ranks 12th in terms of Fellow numbers along with ENT, emergency medicine, and public health. It is the second-largest discipline in terms of face-to-face patient consultations.

As per the estimates of RNZCUC and the Ministry of Health, approximately 2.5 million urgent care patient consultations take place each year in New Zealand. This number amounts to around 15% of overall primary care doctor presentations.

New Zealand was the first country to recognize urgent care as a separate branch of medicine. Due to the availability of more urgent care clinics per capita in Auckland than in any other part of the country, emergency room attendance rates are much lower in Auckland. This has led to New Zealand having the lowest rate of emergency department visits per capita among the developed countries.

Training for Fellowship of RNZCUC

Our registrars work under an employment contract with urgent care clinics for a period of four years, which may be reduced for those with prior credits and experience. Health Workforce New Zealand provides funding to cover the expenses of their training.

Future trends in Urgent care

The urgent care plan will be influenced by five trends in 2023: continuing to address COVID-19, fostering relationships with the pediatric population, integrating urgent and general care, integrating specialized services, and enhancing operational effectiveness in response to staffing issues.

Urgent Care Response to Endemic COVID

Early in December 2022, we observed that the number of post-pandemic visits to urgent care had stabilized at a 15%–20% increase over 2019, with around 25% of visits containing a COVID test or diagnosis. The simultaneous presence of flu, strep, RSV, and influenza as well as the use of rapid COVID testing in "symptomatic" respiratory presentations, means that the proposition that COVID added a "second, year-round flu" to urgent care is supported by visit data, even though this suggests that "core" injury or illness visits may still fall short of 2019 levels.

Building Bridges to the Pediatric Community

A pediatric urgent care facility might be privately owned, a part of a larger pediatric multispecialty group, or connected to a children's hospital or health system. Examples of how urgent care interacts with pediatrics include co-branding "adult" and "pediatric" urgent care for instance one building with dual signs, entrances, and waiting rooms but shared staff in a common back office, as well as providing online or in-person urgent care services in schools (either enhancing or replacing the school nurse's office).

Integration of Urgent and Primary Care

Urgent care has always been a consumer-driven concept. Patients have appreciated the convenience of extended-hour sites close to home or work where they may be treated swiftly two times a year. They experience a minor sickness or accident. As a result, many patients refer to their favorite urgent care as their "primary care provider."

Integration of Specialist Services

Like integrating primary care services, the goal here is to keep a large portion of the downstream revenue from urgent care referrals. If, say, 85% of what an urgent care encounter is upper respiratory in nature, it makes sense for urgent care to bring in a board-certified allergy/immunologist during "hay fever season" to follow up with the patient on the underlying cause of their symptoms.

The business reason for providing specialized treatments is that it allows urgent care clinics to increase income from current patients by keeping money that would otherwise be referred out into the community. The value to patients is the same as that of "urgent care," including convenience, accessibility, and quickness.

Increased Efficiency in Response to Staffing Challenges

The nation's economy will be in disarray by the end of 2022 and into 2023

Rising interest rates cause more cash to be diverted to debt repayment, resulting in less cash available for corporate expansion.

Too many individuals have left the labor field, resulting in a mismatch between job opportunities and job searchers.

Wages have soared, and urgent care facilities are finding it difficult to compete with hospital signing incentives and hourly rates.

Increased occupancy, contracted services, energy, and supply expenses, but little or no change in reimbursement due to insurance contract durations of 2-3 years

In conclusion, Urgent care clinics in New Zealand are an essential alternative to emergency rooms and general practitioners for non-life-threatening conditions. These clinics provide immediate medical assistance with ease of accessibility, extended hours, and a wide range of services, which are crucial in keeping New Zealanders healthy and meeting the needs of visitors. You can confidently navigate these services by knowing when to seek urgent care, making informed decisions, and actively participating in your healthcare.

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