The Hawaii Traveler

From the Put on Clean Underwear Before You Go Out files: Identify the urgent care centers near your island destination before you leave home, and keep the information with your other important travel docs and itinerary information. (I can’t tell you how many times I have needed this information, especially when we began traveling with a young one.) Wouldn’t your mother be so proud of you for taking your health and safety into consideration?What is an Urgent Care Clinic?
It’s a medical treatment facility in which doctors and nurses treat acute illnesses and injuries that are not serious enough to warrant a trip to an emergency room. Patients can visit clinics on an unscheduled, walk-in basis. Although most urgent care clinics are open extended hours, they usually are not open 24 hours, as are hospital emergency rooms.

Although they are useful for travelers when unexpected medical situations arise, urgent care clinics are not emergency rooms. If emergency treatment is necessary, call 911 or visit a hospital emergency room.

How to Find an Urgent Care Clinic Near You

• Ask your hotel or resort concierge/manager
• Call your insurance provider about locations, and whether your benefits will cover a visit to those clinics
• Ask your family or primary care physician
• Conduct an Internet search and then call the centers listed.

Image by Jody Reale

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