Outpatient Care

Treatment options for any ailment can be categorized into two sections: inpatient and outpatient care. As a patient, you'll need to know the difference between the two so that you can make a decision on what kind of care you'd prefer and what your doctor thinks you need.

Here at Hill Family Medicine, we're dedicated to helping you access the type of care you need. We strive for clarity and transparency in all that we do, which is why we make understanding your care procedures so readily accessible.

Explore our outpatient services and why you may need outpatient care in the future

What is Outpatient Care?

Outpatient care is a medical service that doesn't require the patient to stay at a facility. Indeed, it's a type of care that saves people thousands of dollars a year in medical care costs. Outpatient care can be anything, including procedures, services and tests. As long as it doesn't involve an overnight stay in the hospital, it's considered an outpatient service. Thanks to medical advances, there are more and more services that can be done as outpatient care.

Examples of potential outpatient services:

Wellness & Prevention
Diagnostic Service
Long-term Treatments
Rehabilitation

What is the Difference?

Inpatient and outpatient care are, still, often a choice you can make when trying to find the best care options for you. They're extremely different types of care services, and which one you choose should depend on a variety of factors. Many folks believe that it's entirely up to the doctor on whether you have to do those tests and pursue that care in the health care facility and overnight, or whether you can go home that day. There are three major differences in inpatient and outpatient care that determine most people's ultimate decision on which they'd like to use: Cost, comfort level, and convenience. Obviously, the ability to treat an ailment as an outpatient or inpatient issue relies largely on the ailment itself and the kind of care you need. However, thanks to medical technology improvements and the benefits of outpatient care over inpatient care, there are more and more ailments that can be treated with outpatient care. After all, wouldn't you like to get the procedure done and then go home to your own bed?

Cost

The best benefit of outpatient care, by far, is cost. Going into the hospital and having an overnight stay costs a lot of money and time. If you could accomplish the same thing with a simple visit to your primary care physician and achieve the same results, why wouldn't you do that? The tests will likely cost what they're going to cost, but there's no reason to run extras simply because you're there, sitting in a hospital bed. For most, outpatient care targets the issue and allows the doctor to rule out other ailments and pinpoint the real issue in much less time for much less money. If you were to, for example, have an overnight stay to assess your low-grade insomnia and find ways to address it, you'd end up paying thousands of dollars for the observation, and for the same tests that your doctor would likely have you conduct on your own or with a trusted loved one.

Rather than over-complicate your care and force you to pay more for it, outpatient care provides a wide array of options that cost less and are more simple and elegant in nature.

Comfort Level

When you're sick and uncomfortable, all you want to do is stay home and stare at a wall. Getting treatment for your ailments, however, often involves a long and arduous trip to the doctor's office and can sometimes escalate past what's really needed. If you could, wouldn't you rather have the option to heal up in the safety and comfort of your own home? Outpatient care gives you the opportunity to do that without too much fanfare. Our outpatient services get what you need done completed quickly and efficiently so that you can go home, recover and feel the effects of the treatment take place in only a couple of days.

It's an excellent way to limit the discomfort of getting treated for an illness you simply didn't plan on having.

Convenience

Beyond the other benefits of outpatient care, it's also far more convenient than any inpatient care solution might be. Getting treated for mental health issues, infections and having testing done is all a big enough pain to get out of the way as it is. If the ailment is more serious, it's going to be even more unpleasant to pursue these same treatments while suffering more than usual. Outpatient care has grown extremely popular because it allows health care providers to not waste your time or theirs on unnecessary precautions, like holding you overnight when you're fine to go home. Or, for example, not referring you to the hospital when the same tests can be completed and used to draw conclusions from a primary care office.

Time is, above all else, our most valuable resource. So, if there's a way to save time and still get you the treatment you need, we'll always choose that option.

Outpatient is On The Rise

In fact, hospitals and medical care professionals all over the United States are turning to more and more outpatient options than ever before. As the population grows, the more people that medical professionals can treat without taking up a hospital bed, the better. It saves you money, but it also saves the hospital capacity for when someone truly sick who needs constant monitoring needs care. In fact, it's actually making it easier for health professionals of all kinds to make service better and faster than ever before. Now, you won't have to wait to be served, and you'll simply be able to take your tests and go home. You'll be able to receive your treatment and go home. That means you'll be in comfort as you sit out your ailment and begin to go through the healing process, and the healthcare industry will be able to serve more individuals than ever before.More people in comfort for longer could never be a bad thing. That's why outpatient care has become such a popular solution for so many different kinds of illnesses.

Outpatient Care Options

Outpatient Services We Can Provide:

Management of chronic illness (including but not limited to high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol)
Low-T (low testosterone) evaluations and treatment
Management and treatment of insomnia, anxiety, depression, ADD, and ADHD
Annual, pre-employment, sports physicals, surgical clearance
Well Women Exam
Well Man Exam
Adult Vaccinations (Flu, Tetanus, Hepatitis)
Referral for screening exams (colonoscopy, mammogram, bone density)
Referral for necessary imaging studies (X-ray, Cat scans, MRI, etc.)
Referral to subspecialties as clinically indicated
Blood work, urinalysis, skin pathology
Minor cuts and bruises
Ingrown toenail removal
Cough/cold/allergy/sore throat
Skin Foreign body removal
Minor Eye Injuries
Urinary tract infections
Fatigue
Skin sores/Infections
Sleep disturbances
Stress and more!

Don't see the outpatient care you need listed above? This list is not comprehensive and we'd be happy to speak with you about your specific medical needs! Our trained physicians are equipped to assist you with an array of medical services.

Local Physicians You Can Trust

Here at Hill Family Medicine & Skin Care, we understand how stressful a visit to the doctor can be. It is hard to trust your medical needs to just anyone. This is particularly true if you have been concerned about a specific ailment or illness. Our goal is to put our patients at ease from the moment they walk through the door. We want you to feel assured that you can count on us to provide you with attentive and meaningful care. As a locally based outpatient care clinic, we are invested in our work. We care about our reputation in our community and we work hard to ensure that our neighbors' needs are met. Whether you are coming to us with a chronic illness and you need new ideas for treatment or you are simply visiting for a checkup, we will listen carefully to your needs in order to provide you with the ideal treatment options.

If you are looking for a family physician that you can count on for quality medical care, we invite you to book an appointment at our clinic today. Whether you need to stop in for a quick vaccination for your kids or you are looking for a long-term solution to an ongoing chronic medical condition, we will be honored to serve your needs. Our outpatient care clinic is located on the border of Austin and Bee Cave. We provide service for patients across the hill country area, including Lakeway, Westlake, and surrounding communities. If you have any further questions about the medical care we provide, don't hesitate to reach out via phone at (512) 428-5764