ER or urgent care? How to decide.
Call 911 right now if:
- Chest pain or pressure
- Trouble breathing
- Stroke symptoms — face drooping, arm weakness, slurred speech
- Severe bleeding or a major injury
- A severe allergic reaction
- Confusion, fainting, or a person who won't wake up
For life-threatening emergencies, call 911. Do not drive to us, and do not wait to read the rest of this page.
The short version
The emergency room is for things that could threaten your life, a limb, or your eyesight. Urgent care is for the things that need attention today but are not that: fevers, infections, sprains, cuts that need stitches, a stomach bug that won't let up.
If you are not sure, go to the emergency room. That is the honest answer, and it is the one we would give a member of our own family.
Go to the emergency room
- Chest pain or pressure
- Trouble breathing
- Stroke symptoms
- Severe bleeding or a deep wound that won't stop
- A bone that is visibly out of place or broken through the skin
- A head injury with vomiting, confusion, or loss of consciousness
- A severe allergic reaction
- Severe abdominal pain
- Seizures
- Thoughts of harming yourself
- Any baby under 3 months with a fever, or any infant who seems very unwell
Urgent care can handle this
- Fever, cold, flu, or COVID symptoms
- Sore throat
- Ear or sinus infection
- Cough
- Pink eye
- Rashes and insect bites
- Vomiting or diarrhea
- A urinary tract infection
- Sprains and strains
- Minor cuts that may need stitches
- Minor burns
- A skin infection or abscess
- Dehydration that needs IV fluids
What we don't do
We are an urgent care clinic, not an emergency room. We do not have an emergency department, we are not open overnight, and we are not the right place for a condition that could become life-threatening. If something turns out to be more than we can treat, we will tell you and help you get to the right place.
If it's your child
For children, go to the emergency room for trouble breathing, a seizure, a head injury with vomiting or confusion, a child who is limp or won't wake up, a child who won't drink anything at all, or a fever with a stiff neck or a rash that doesn't fade when you press on it.
If we're closed
We will be open Monday through Friday, 5:30 to 9:30 PM. Outside those hours, call your doctor's office — many have an after-hours line — or go to an emergency room if it can't wait until we open. For a poisoning, call Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222.
Where we fit
PGS Urgent Care opens in early 2027, Monday through Friday from 5:30 to 9:30 PM, on the north side of Brownsville. PGS Urgent Care is physician-owned and physician-supervised. Care is provided by experienced physician assistants (PAs) under the supervision of the owning physicians.
Frequently asked questions
What if this is an emergency?
For life-threatening emergencies, call 911. Go to the nearest emergency room for chest pain or pressure, trouble breathing, stroke symptoms, severe bleeding or a major injury, a severe allergic reaction, or confusion, fainting, or a person who won't wake up.
What's the difference between an ER and urgent care?
An emergency room is equipped and staffed for conditions that could threaten your life, a limb, or your eyesight, and it is open around the clock. An urgent care clinic handles illnesses and injuries that need attention today but are not life-threatening.
What if I'm not sure?
Go to the emergency room. A visit that turns out not to have been an emergency is a much better outcome than the other way around.
What if I think I broke something?
We do not have X-ray at this clinic. If a bone may be broken, go to an emergency room or a clinic with imaging. We can splint an injury and refer you for imaging, but we cannot tell you whether a bone is broken.
Do you see babies?
Yes. We see children of all ages, and adults. If your baby seems very unwell, go to an emergency room — a fever in a baby is treated differently from a fever in an older child.
What if you're closed?
We open in early 2027. We're open Monday through Friday, 5:30 to 9:30 PM. Outside those hours, call your doctor's office or go to an emergency room if it can't wait.