An Urgent Care physician at St. Vincent’s One Nineteen addresses seasonal concerns
By Dr. Sharon Lawrence
For many, November is a month reserved for football, feasts and family gatherings. Unfortunately, November is also associated with flu, fever and fractures. Since our St. Vincent’s Urgent Care patients often ask how to address such seasonal challenges, here are four fall suggestions for better health:
- Address flu and fevers. Get a flu shot now. Although vaccines don’t always protect against every flu strain, they lessen its impact. No one should worry about getting the flu from the vaccine. Since today’s vaccine is derived from a dead virus, you can’t get the flu from the shot.
Treat a child’s fever with the recommended dose of children’s acetaminophen or ibuprofen before bringing them to Urgent Care. Such treatment addresses their comfort and avoids the risk of fever-induced seizures. If the fever is lowered by arrival, we will still treat the child for high fever concerns. Please note we see children ages 3 months of age and up at St. Vincent’s Urgent Care.
Since elderly adults typically don’t spike fevers, but can be easily dehydrated, seek prompt medical attention if fever occurs.
- Plan safe holiday gatherings. Help elders navigate stairs. Remove tripping hazards, like throw rugs. Designate adults to monitor risks to children, including alcohol, purses containing medication, turkey fryers and drowning hazards.
Be attentive to unmentioned injuries. Children may not identify specific pain, but may start limping or not using an arm. An Urgent Care x-ray can settle fracture suspicions.
- Address infections promptly. Urinary tract infections can lead to sepsis and kidney infections. Over-the-counter medications can mask symptoms of a raging infection. If you can’t see your primary care doctor right away, seek Urgent Care treatment.
- Connect with a care continuum. Since St. Vincent’s One Nineteen is a part of St. Vincent’s Health System, we can refer patients to primary and specialty physicians who can follow up concerns. That means our Urgent Care can be a whole family’s wellness entry point, extending through every season of the year.
St. Vincent’s Urgent Care welcomes patients on its St. Vincent’s One Nineteen campus. The facility is located at 7191 Cahaba Valley Road, right off U.S. Highway 280 and U.S. Highway 119. St. Vincent’s Urgent Care is open Monday through Friday, 1 to 9 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. No appointment is necessary. For more information, visit stvurgentcare.com or call 205-408-2366.
Dr. Sharon Lawrence is an urgent care physician at St. Vincent’s Urgent Care on the One Nineteen campus.
