Can Urgent Care Refer You to a Specialist?

Referrals are typically provided by an individual’s primary care provider or a general physician directing the individual to see a specialist for specific medical services. There are a number of circumstances under which referrals may be required.
 
Certain medical circumstances require specialized care beyond the breadth of what a general practitioner can provide. This could occur during different stages of medical care and a referral may be ordered when the diagnosis is unknown, or to confirm a diagnosis through either the examination of specialists or through ordering more advanced testing. In cases of more complex and advanced conditions, the general practitioner may wish to refer a patient to a provider who is more familiar with the condition or has greater experience treating it.
 
A second opinion from a specialist can also be helpful. These are commonly considered when treatment options, such as surgery, are involved that the patient may wish to avoid unless necessary.
 
Referrals may also be necessary for insurance purposes, according to the individual’s specific insurance plan, which may require a referral for certain types of specialty care or tests.
 
Advanced care, particularly if it involves surgical intervention, can be expensive, and insurance companies will want to ensure that due diligence has been done and it has been deemed medically necessary. This includes getting approval for certain imaging tests such as MRI, CT scans, and more.
 
From a patient perspective, certain specialists may not see patients without referrals, making them an essential component of obtaining access to the specialists they wish to see.

Referrals are an important part of the healthcare process because they prevent specialists from being overbooked and having difficulty servicing the patients that they need to see. This is because there are inherently fewer specialists available given the more narrow focus of their area of practice.
 
From a patient perspective, referrals are typically associated with complex health conditions or medical concerns. This can involve several advanced imaging tests, such as MRIs or CT scans, and can also involve complex treatment interventions such as surgical intervention or cancer treatment that may be beyond the scope of what a general practitioner is capable of carrying out.
 
Additionally, many patients will require a referral to receive coverage for their visit to specialists under their insurance plan depending on the specifics of their policy.

Patients can visit urgent care centers such as Express Healthcare without a referral. Urgent Care Centers are designed to meet all manner of a patient’s non-emergency needs on a swift and effective basis.
 
In most cases, urgent care centers deal with acute concerns, including injuries and illnesses, and work with patients to resolve those within a single appointment, helping them find symptom relief and recover from their issues.
 
However, it is possible that patients visiting urgent care with a seemingly acute concern may exhibit symptoms indicative of an underlying, more complex health problem. In cases where this is identified, an urgent care provider can refer a patient to a specialist as needed.

There are many reasons patients choose Express Healthcare for their healthcare needs. Visiting an urgent care center is an effective and affordable option to help patients receive swift access to the care they need.
 
Express Healthcare offers treatment for all manner of medical conditions, as many urgent care centers do, however, what sets Express Healthcare apart is access to a wide range of diagnostic testing including on-site lab screening, in-house X-rays, ultrasound, and much more.
 
With a wide range of diagnostic services, urgent care providers at Express Healthcare can help identify and diagnose even more complex conditions, providing patients referrals as needed for these advanced testing services and administering them on-site. Like other urgent care centers, Express Healthcare is open evenings and weekend hours to ensure that whenever a patient’s issue arises, they will have access to care.
 
Express Healthcare offers additional services as well, such as telemedicine, which is a convenient option for follow-up appointments, and access to a wide range of preventative services as well as curative services, such as vaccines and immunizations, occupational health, STD testing, and much more.

Specialist referrals are available at Express Healthcare. For more information, contact us or book an appointment online. We are located at 4701 Melbourne Place College Park, MD 20740. We serve patients from College Park MD, New Carrollton MD, Springdale MD, White Oak MD, Berwyn Heights MD, Laurel MD, Seabrook MD, Mitchellville MD, and surrounding areas.