1-Stop Health Care Shopping

Are in-store care centers right for you?

Care centers are popping up in pharmacies, department stores and strip malls all around the United States. Typically, you can get treatment for a range of minor medical problems without an appointment for $25 to $60. Nurse practitioners or physician's assistants staff the centers, though they generally have a doctor on call for more serious problems, and an arrangement with a nearby emergency room for true emergencies.

The centers are convenient, but are they good choices? In most cases, start with a call to your primary care doctor to determine your best course of treatment. But after hours, or for people who don't have a primary care doctor, the centers might be good options.

Apostolos Lekkos, D.O., an emergency medicine physician on the medical staff at Baylor Medical Center at Irving, says they are fine for minor illnesses such as colds, runny noses and urinary tract infections, and minor scrapes and bruises. "Emergency rooms are overcrowded, and for small things it's easier to go to a clinic—it's quick in and out, and a lot less expensive than the emergency room," he says.

Care centers also can be good choices for routine care such as pregnancy tests, flu shots and sports physicals.

But Dr. Lekkos warns that people with headaches, chest pain or anything more than a low-grade fever need to be seen by a physician. "Care centers have strict protocols to follow, and the protocols should be overseen by a physician. Any deviation from the protocol is a red flag—they need to be sent to the nearest emergency department," he says.

The centers also need affiliation with doctors who can provide follow-up care for people who don't have a primary care doctor. "They need a referral system set up with someone in the community," says Dr. Lekkos.

By Stephanie Thurrott