Camping and Hiking: The outdoors can be a great place to escape the rush of city life and enjoy a relaxing landscape. When camping and hiking, make sure you’re being safe. Allergic reactions can occur from insects and plant-based reactions. Serious falls can also land you in the ER. Many camping emergencies can happen at night, and require quick action. Don’t wait until the morning – get the medical attention you need as soon as possible.

The Beach/Pool: When you’re around any body of water, always be safe and cautious. It only takes a couple of moments for your child to start drowning. Be alert and make sure you and your kids have had swimming lessons. Playing in the sand can be very dangerous in extreme heat if you’re not properly hydrated. Protect against heat stroke by wearing sunscreen and lightweight, colored clothing, taking a break in the shade, and staying hydrated.

Bicycling: Bicycling is a great way to stay active and venture around the neighborhood or city. Make sure to wear your helmet when bicycling, head injuries are equally as common as arm/wrist injuries. Avoid bicycle vs. car accidents by taking caution and paying attention to surrounding cars who may not be able to see you when biking on streets and roads.

Barbeques: Barbeques can be a great way for family and friends to enjoy food and company outdoors. Keep children away from the grill and make sure you are handling the grill properly to avoid any fires or burns. Second degree burns can happen easily with an open flame. Be safe by teaching those around you how to use the grill (and fireworks) safely. Late night gatherings can lead to late night injuries, but remember Neighbors is open 24/7.

Summer Sports: When you’re getting out there and being active, stay safe to avoid any sports injuries. We want your sporting event to be fun and not painful. Wear the necessary sports protection like knee pads, mouth guards, and proper shoes. Make sure to stretch often, take breaks in between, and not overwork yourself. In the summer heat, playing sports outdoors can be especially taxing on your body. Stay hydrated when playing sports to replenish the water loss by sweat. Dehydration can take you to the emergency room instead of victory on the courts.

With these situations in mind, we want you to have the best summer ever. If you do happen to experience an unexpected health situation we are always here with short wait times and comfortable waiting areas. Visit https://nec24.com/ to find a Neighbors Emergency Center near you!

What is a Freestanding Emergency Center?

A freestanding emergency center (or FEC) is exactly like it sounds: an independent emergency room with lifesaving personnel and technology. Each state has its own requirements for a facility to operate. For example, Texas locations must comply with certain medical training, structural, and health code regulations to operate. That’s why many FECs advertise board-certified physicians and registered nurses. Each state also has different classifications when it comes to insurance and how services are billed. In most situations, FEC billing is similar to hospital-based ERs in terms of out-of-pocket expenses.

Learn more about how FECs work with insurance.

Every FEC is able to treat major injuries such as broken bones, deep cuts, sports injuries like concussions and other head trauma, and additional serious injuries. In cases when more involved surgery is needed for trauma such as gunshot wounds, an FEC will stabilize the patient before transferring them to a larger medical facility.

How do FECs differ from Urgent Care?

There are many differences. The primary difference is the services that are offered. FECs will treat more serious injuries and illnesses, whereas Urgent Care excels at healing more common occurrences like a severe sinus infection or strep throat. Unlike FECs, Urgent Care doesn’t offer the same life-saving equipment, such as CT Scans, Ultrasounds, and X-Rays, or even intravenous capabilities.

Imagine being in a situation where a doctor needed to see inside your body to get answers in order to determine treatment but didn’t have the right tools. It would be frustrating for both patient and physician. This is not the case at Neighbors. We have on-site imaging ready for our patients 24/7.

FECs also have much lower wait times than Urgent Care and hospital-based ERs. The advantage to less waiting is getting treatment from qualified professionals faster. Likewise, less waiting means less psychological stress that often accompanies emergency situations.

Overall, if your emergency feels critical and more than just uncomfortable, then an FEC is the better choice.

But for us, that day has arrived. Neighbors Emergency Center is proud to announce that Dr. Setul Patel, MD, MBA is a finalist for the 2015 EY Entrepreneur of the Year for the Gulf Coast region.

On June 25th, we will be excited to attend the gala at the Hilton Americas – Houston Hotel, where the award winner will be announced. I hope they don’t mind if we bring signs and noisemakers to cheer on our accomplished leader.

Regional award winners are eligible for the EY Entrepreneur of the Year national awards, which will be announced on November 14th in Palm Springs, California. The winner of the national award will go on to compete for the World Entrepreneur of the Year Award in June 2016 in Monaco.

EY’s Entrepreneur Of The Year is considered the world’s most prestigious business award. The nominees not only create and build successful businesses, but also revolutionize their industry, perpetuate a standard of excellence, create jobs, and bring a sense of vibrancy to surrounding communities.

Dr. Setul G. Patel, MD, MBA helped found Neighbors Health System in 2008, a regional emergency medicine healthcare delivery model through free-standing emergency facilities. As President and CEO, Setul has helped grow the company with simple philosophies—take care of the patient and take care of the people who deliver their care. In addition to providing exceptional patient care, Neighbors offers physicians equity opportunities to invest in their facilities. This model has helped grow the pool of quality physicians in the Neighbors organization, and lead to high quality patient care in the communities they serve.

Dr. Setul Patel started his career as an emergency room physician, graduating from the University of Virginia Medical School and completing specialty training at Christiana Care Health System in Newark, Delaware, where he was also Chief Resident. After obtaining his MBA from the University of Tennessee and graduating Phi Kappa Phi, Dr. Patel helped found Neighbors and has never looked back. His leadership style is mission driven and vision focused, and believes sound business principles lead to value delivery and organizational success. Through a hectic administrative schedule, Setul still finds time to see patients through clinical shifts in the ER several times a month, exemplifying the philosophies he promotes.

Congratulations to Dr. Patel for being a finalist in the EY Entrepreneur of the Year award selections for the Gulf Coast region.

Houston based Neighbors Health System is a leading emergency medicine care delivery system through free-standing emergency centers focused on quality, patient convenience, and a concierge care platform that has become the industry benchmark for emergency healthcare. For more information, please visit www.nec24.com.”