Veterans Memorial Hospital Urgent Care is available seven days a week and designed for treating injuries or illnesses requiring immediate care, but not serious enough to require an emergency department visit.

Examples of what a patient may seek Urgent Care for could include back pain; bladder or urinary tract infection; cough; cuts, scrapes and bruises; diarrhea; fever, colds and flu; ear pain, swimmers ear, ear infection, or wax removal; insect or tick bite; joint pain; minor burn; nausea/vomiting; pink eye; rash; seasonal allergies; sinus and upper respiratory infection; sore or strep throat; strains/sprains; sudden back or neck pain; urinary problems or vaginal irritation/discharge. Most insurance does cover urgent care visits. Patients can usually expect to pay a copay or deductible for visits to Urgent Care treatment centers.

Urgent Care is offered every Monday through Friday evening from 5-9 p.m. and Saturdays, Sundays and holidays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Patients may enter through the main entrance of the hospital and ask for urgent care. A registered nurse will assess each patient and decide if urgent care or ER is the level of care they need.

In addition to utilizing Urgent Care, Veterans Memorial Hospital also encourages community members to ask their provider if their care can be provided close to home, at Veterans Memorial Hospital. Many of the hospitals skilled care, surgical, maternity, laboratory, rehab and x-ray patients among others would have been sent elsewhere for their care, had they not specifically asked for local care.

Here is a list of some of the services patients can ask for locally for convenience:

Laboratory - Veterans Memorial Hospitals Laboratory has the ability to draw and run many lab tests locally. Specialists from out of town often require blood work prior to an appointment. Often those tests can be run locally and the results sent electronically the same day the blood is drawn. Weekly INR testing can also be completed by the hospitals lab as well as wellness testing which is provided daily from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., Monday through Friday.

X-ray/Radiology Services - CT scans, mammograms, dexa bone densitometry scans, and ultrasounds are available the same or the next day.

Nuclear Medicine - Cardiac stress tests are available every Thursday at Veterans Memorial Hospital.

Respiratory Therapy - Pulmonary function testing is available the same or next day, overnight oximetry tests available within one or two days and sleep studies are scheduled within a month or less.

Rehabilitation - Physical therapy, Occupational therapy and Speech therapy can all begin within one to two days.

Nutrition and Diabetes - Consultations for nutrition or diabetes can also begin within one or two days.

We want everyone in our local communities to ask for local options before leaving the area for their health care, states Mike Myers, Administrator of Veterans Memorial Hospital. So many services can be provided close to home. Its convenient, top notch and our friendly staff truly shows how neighbors can care for neighbors.For questions on local medical testing and services, call Veterans Memorial Hospital at 563-568-3411.

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Urgent Care continues; Ask for other local health care options - Waukon Standard