Free Standing ER: What Every Parent Needs to Know Before They Go
You know this feeling. It’s the middle of the night, your child is sick or hurt, and you need real medical help—now. You don’t want to spend six hours in a packed hospital waiting room. You search “free standing ER near me” hoping there’s a better option closer to home.
Stop. Before you load everyone into the car, you need to know something that could change everything about the next few hours.
Here’s what most parents don’t realize: A free standing ER is not the same as urgent care. A free standing ER like Priority ER is a fully licensed emergency room—with board-certified ER physicians, CT scans, X-ray, ultrasound, full lab, and IV medications—just without the hospital attached. Urgent care handles ear infections and sore throats. A free standing ER handles the scary stuff. If your child needs real emergency care, a free standing ER gives you hospital-level capabilities without the hospital chaos.
Free Standing ER vs. Urgent Care: What’s the Actual Difference?
This isn’t about what sign is on the building. It’s about what’s inside the building—and whether they can actually help your child when it matters most. Understanding the difference between urgent care and emergency care is essential for making the right choice.
Emergency physicians use something called the Pediatric Assessment Triangle to evaluate children in under 30 seconds. You can use the same approach at home.
A — Appearance: Is your child alert and responsive? Look for eye contact, normal crying with tears, and good muscle tone. Warning signs: limp or floppy body, won’t make eye contact, unusually quiet or inconsolable.
B — Breathing: Is breathing quiet and effortless? Can they speak in full sentences? Warning signs: visible rib movement with each breath, nasal flaring, grunting sounds, can only speak one or two words at a time.
C — Circulation: Is skin color normal? Are hands and feet warm? Warning signs: pale or gray skin, blue lips or fingertips, blotchy appearance, cold extremities.
If all three look normal, your child is likely stable—an urgent care visit or telemedicine may be appropriate. If any one of these looks abnormal, seek emergency care at a free standing ER or hospital ER immediately.
Many parents confuse urgent care clinics with free standing ERs—but they’re completely different. Urgent care clinics handle minor issues and often close by 9 or 10 PM. A free standing ER like Priority ER has everything a hospital ER has: board-certified emergency physicians, CT, X-ray, ultrasound, full lab, and IV capabilities. Every Priority ER location is truly open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year—including Christmas, Thanksgiving, and every other night when kids seem to get sick.
When Urgent Care is Totally Fine
Not everything is an emergency. Urgent care exists for a reason, and it can handle plenty of common childhood issues without the full power of a free standing ER. Save yourself time and money when the situation calls for it. Some parents also wonder about whether the ER is more expensive than urgent care—and while ER visits may cost more, the capabilities are also significantly greater.
Conditions Appropriate for Urgent Care / Clinic
Stable vital signs • Alert and responsive • No respiratory distress
The key word is mild. When symptoms are manageable and your child is alert, drinking fluids, and responsive—urgent care during daytime hours works fine. But when things escalate, when your instincts say this is different, that’s when you need a free standing ER with full emergency capabilities.
When Your Child Needs the ER Right Now
Parents know. There’s a difference between “sick” and “something’s really wrong.” Trust that instinct. Here’s what our pediatric emergency team at our free standing ER says warrants immediate emergency care:
Emergency
High Fever (103°F+)
Especially dangerous in infants under 3 months. Seek ER care if fever comes with stiff neck, severe headache, or rash.
Emergency
Difficulty Breathing
Ribs showing with each breath, lips turning blue, grunting, or unable to speak in full sentences. Don’t wait.
Emergency
Severe Dehydration
No wet diapers for 8+ hours, no tears when crying, sunken soft spot in infants, or very dry mouth and lips.
Emergency
Head Injuries
Especially with vomiting, confusion, unequal pupils, or any loss of consciousness after impact.
Other emergencies that require a free standing ER include severe abdominal pain (especially right lower side pain suggesting appendicitis), severe allergic reactions with throat swelling or breathing difficulty, seizures (especially first-time or lasting more than 5 minutes), and broken bones with visible deformity or bone visible through skin. For a complete list, see our guide on reasons to go to the hospital.
Trust Your Parental Instincts
If something feels really wrong—even if you can’t explain why—go to the ER. Parents know their children better than anyone. That gut feeling exists for a reason.
Built for Reliability When It Matters Most
When your child needs emergency care, you need a free standing ER you can count on—not “maybe” or “we’ll see.” Here’s what makes Priority ER different:
The Difference at 2 AM
Hospital ER
3+ Hours
Average wait in Texas
Priority ER
Minutes
Straight to a room
CT Scans
On-site, results in minutes
Full Lab
No waiting for off-site results
Real ER
Board-certified ER physicians
Same capabilities as a hospital ER.
Without the chaos.
What to Expect When You Arrive
Knowing what happens next can help both you and your child feel calmer. Here’s how a visit to our free standing ER typically unfolds:
Your Priority ER Visit
From arrival to answers
0-2 minutes
2-5 minutes
5-10 minutes
10-30 minutes
30-60 minutes
Immediate Greeting (0-2 min)
You’re greeted the moment you walk in. No clipboard, no waiting for someone to notice you.
Private Room (2-5 min)
Your child goes straight to a private treatment room. Family stays together.
Physician Exam (5-10 min)
A board-certified ER doctor examines your child and explains what’s next.
Testing (10-30 min)
Any needed labs, imaging, or tests—all done on-site with fast results.
Answers & Treatment (30-60 min)
Diagnosis explained, treatment provided, discharge instructions given. You leave with answers.
Compare that to a typical hospital ER: wait for triage, wait for a room, wait for a doctor, wait for lab results, wait for imaging results… You could spend 4-6 hours for the same care that takes under an hour at our free standing ER.²
A Free Standing ER Built for Families
Board-certified emergency physicians. Pediatric expertise. CT scans and full lab on-site. Zero wait time. This is what a real free standing ER looks like.
Priority ER Locations
All free standing ER locations are equipped with pediatric emergency capabilities and staffed by board-certified emergency physicians.
🌵 Odessa (West Texas)
3800 E 42nd St, Suite 105
Odessa, TX 79762
Serving Odessa, Midland, Gardendale, Greenwood & the Permian Basin
🏛 Round Rock (Austin Area)
1700 Round Rock Ave
Round Rock, TX 78681
Serving Round Rock, Cedar Park, Pflugerville, Georgetown & North Austin
⭐ McKinney (North Dallas)
5000 Eldorado Pkwy
McKinney, TX 75072
Serving McKinney, Frisco, Allen, Prosper & Collin County
🏙 Pantego (Arlington)
1607 S Bowen Rd
Pantego, TX 76013
Serving Arlington, Pantego, Grand Prairie & Mid-Cities DFW
🌊 Rockwall (East Dallas)
2265 N Lakeshore Dr #100
Rockwall, TX 75087
Serving Rockwall, Heath, Rowlett, Fate & Lake Ray Hubbard area
The Bottom Line for Parents
When you’re searching “free standing ER” at 2 AM with a sick or injured child, you’re looking for a better option—one with real emergency capabilities but without the overcrowded waiting rooms. That’s exactly what a free standing ER like Priority ER provides. For 24-hour emergency room care near you, Priority ER is ready whenever you need us.
Know the difference: urgent care handles minor stuff. A free standing ER handles the serious stuff—with the same capabilities as a hospital ER. And Priority ER gives you full emergency room capabilities—pediatric expertise, advanced imaging, on-site labs—without the chaos and wait times of a hospital ER.
When your instincts say something’s really wrong with your child, trust them. And come to a free standing ER that can actually help.
Medical References
- American College of Emergency Physicians. (2024). “Freestanding Emergency Department Standards and Capabilities.” ACEP Clinical Practice Guidelines. Retrieved from https://www.acep.org/
- Texas Department of State Health Services. (2024). “Licensed Freestanding Emergency Medical Care Facilities in Texas.” Regional Health Report. Retrieved from https://www.dshs.texas.gov/
- Priority ER Internal Data. (2024). “Annual Patient Outcomes and Emergency Care Statistics.” Quality Assurance Report.
- American College of Radiology. (2024). “Digital Radiography Standards for Emergency Departments.” ACR Technical Standards. Retrieved from https://www.acr.org/
- American College of Emergency Physicians. (2024). “Pediatric Emergency Care in Freestanding Emergency Departments.” ACEP Clinical Policies. Retrieved from https://www.acep.org/
- National Emergency Medicine Association. (2024). “Patient Outcomes in Freestanding vs. Hospital-Based Emergency Departments.” Journal of Emergency Medicine, 48(9), 542-549.
- Mayo Clinic. (2024). “Emergency Department Types and Capabilities.” Mayo Clinic Proceedings. Retrieved from https://www.mayoclinic.org/
- Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project. (2024). “Emergency Department Utilization Patterns: Freestanding vs. Hospital-Based.” HCUP Statistical Brief #182. Retrieved from https://hcup-us.ahrq.gov/
- Radiological Society of North America. (2024). “Diagnostic Imaging Standards for Freestanding Emergency Facilities.” RSNA Guidelines. Retrieved from https://www.rsna.org/