INDIANAPOLIS — Urgent care facilities across central Indiana are slammed as flu, COVID-19 and RSV cases fill their waiting rooms.
At IU Health’s downtown location, the wait time was more than three hours Wednesday afternoon.
“If I have to, I’ll wait. It’s better than going to the emergency room,” said one mom who brought her son.
Some people were lucky enough to snag an appointment early in the morning.
“Woke up first thing in the morning and did the ‘save a spot’ option because I had a cough that woke me up. So, I was looking for somewhere right away,” said Tyler McNeal.
McNeal waited about 30 minutes to see a doctor. She said she is thankful it wasn’t much longer.
“I was telling a friend the other day it’s like urgent cares aren’t urgent anymore, because you either have to make an appointment or you wait forever,” McNeal said.
All week, several IU Health urgent care locations have reported long wait times.
At one point Wednesday morning, the wait time at the West Lafayette location was close to 10 hours. The Broad Ripple location was reporting a more than five-hour wait later that day.
13News was able to find appointments at other clinics in the area, but they were very limited.
A few MedCheck clinics have time slots open, but not until the next day or later in the week.
“We are experiencing an influx of patients in the urgent cares, emergency departments and even our primary care and virtual care options,” said Melissa Cash, vice president for retail health and employer solutions at IU Health.
Cash said the long wait times are mostly due to the surge in flu cases.
Right now, Indiana is seeing very high activity, according to the CDC.
“Two out of every three patients are probably positive for flu. We are seeing a pretty big increase. Every month we continue to see more and more patients,” she said.
Since influenza is a viral infection, Cash said many treatments are based on symptoms. If the symptoms are not severe, she said it’s OK to stay home and use over-the-counter medicines.
“If you wake up in the middle of the night or during the day with a fever, it’s OK to do that symptom treatment at home,” Cash said.
Cash also suggests calling your primary care doctor first before going to the urgent care. She said your last resort should be the emergency room.
“If you don’t have any emergent symptoms, shortness of breath, chest pain, don’t go to the emergency department if you don’t feel it’s warranted,” Cash said.
If IU Health urgent cares are on an extended wait time, Cash said patients are allowed to check in at the clinic and then go home until their appointment is available.
“We will allow you to go back home and rest and then we can have you come back when it is your time to be seen,” she said.
IU Health and many other healthcare providers also offer a virtual option to speak to a provider.
To check wait times at IU Health clinics click here.
On Wednesday, Franciscan Health said its ExpressCare locations are also experiencing long wait times. Ascension St. Vincent said its walk-in clinics are busier than normal.