Ambulatory care is any medical care delivered on an outpatient basis. Many medical conditions do not require hospital admission and can be managed without admission to a hospital. Many medical investigations can be performed on an ambulatory basis, including blood tests, X-rays, endoscopy and even biopsy procedures of superficial organs. Medicine is the branch of health science and the sector of public life concerned with maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, treatment and possible prevention of disease and injury. ... A physician visiting the sick in a hospital. ... Blood tests are laboratory tests done on blood to gain an appreciation of disease states and the function of organs. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Radiology. ... Endoscopic images of a duodenal ulcer Endoscopy means looking inside and refers to looking inside the human body for medical reasons. ... A biopsy (in Greek: bios = life and opsy = look/appearance) is a medical test involving the removal of cells or tissues for examination. ...

Sites where ambulatory care can be delivered include:

Physician offices: This is the most common site for the delivery of ambulatory care. Physicians of many specialties deliver ambulatory care. These physicians include specialists in family medicine, internal medicine, obstetrics, gynecology, cardiology, gastroenterology, ophthalmology, and dermatology. A general practitioner (GP) or family physician (FP) is a physician who provides primary care. ... Internal medicine is concerned with the diagnosis and treatment of internal diseases, that is, those that affect internal organs or the body as a whole. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... The shamefulness associated with the examination of female genitalia has long inhibited the science of gynaecology. ... Cardiology is the branch of medicine dealing with disorders of the heart and blood vessels. ... Gastroenterology or gastrology is the medical specialty concerned with the field of digestive diseases. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Dermatology (from Greek derma, skin) is a branch of medicine dealing with the skin and its appendages (hair, nails, sweat glands etc). ...

Hospital emergency departments: Some visits to emergency departments result in hospital admission, so these would be considered emergency medicine visits rather than ambulatory care. Most visits to hospital emergency departments, however, do not require hospital admission. Many of these visits are not true emergencies and are better seen in an urgent care center. Emergency medicine is a branch of medicine that is practiced in a hospital emergency department, in the field (in a modified form; see EMS), and other locations where initial medical treatment of illness takes place. ... Urgent care is the delivery of ambulatory care in a facility dedicated to the delivery of unscheduled, walk-in care outside of a hospital emergency department. ...

Urgent care centers: The Urgent Care Association of America(UCAOA) estimates that over 15,000 urgent care centers deliver urgent care in the USA. These centers are designed to evaluate and treat conditions that are not severe enough to require treatment in a hospital emergency department but still require treatment beyond normal physician office hours or before a physician appointment is available.

External links

• National Association for Ambulatory Care
• Urgent Care Association of America
• Journal of Ambulatory Pediatrics

Ambulatory Care Classifications Audiology is the branch of science that studies hearing, balance, and their disorders. ... Two dentists perform surgery on a patient. ... The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ... Epidemiology is the scientific study of factors affecting the health and illness of individuals and populations, and serves as the foundation and logic of interventions made in the interest of public health and preventive medicine. ... Midwifery is the term traditionally used to describe the art of assisting a woman through childbirth. ... Nursing is a discipline focused on assisting individuals, families and communities in attaining, re-attaining and maintaining optimal health and functioning. ... Occupational therapy (OT) is skilled treatment that helps individuals achieve independence in all facets of their lives. ... Optometry (Greek: optos meaning seen or visible and metria meaning measurement) is the health care profession concerned with examination, diagnosis, and treatment of the eyes and related structures and with determination and correction of vision problems using lenses and other optical aids [1]. An optical refractor (also called a phoropter... Bowl of Hygeia Pharmacy (from the Greek φάρμακον = drug) is the profession charged with ensuring the safe use of medication. ... This article concerns itself with the health profession. ... Physician examining a child A physician is a person who practices medicine. ... In the United States, physician assistants (PAs) are non-physicians licensed to practice medicine with a physicians supervision. ... Podiatry is a field of healthcare primarily devoted to the study and treatment of disorders of the foot, ankle, and sometimes knee, leg and hip (collectively known as the lower extremity). ... Psychology is an academic and applied field involving the study of the human mind, brain, and behavior. ... Public health is concerned with threats to the overall health of a community based on population health analysis. ... It has been suggested that Speech-Language Pathology, Speech pathology, Phoniatrics be merged into this article or section. ... Advanced practice nurses (APNs) are Registered Nurses with advanced education, knowledge, skills, and scope of practice. ... Anesthesia (AE), also anaesthesia (BE), is the process of blocking the perception of pain and other sensations. ... Dermatology (from Greek derma, skin) is a branch of medicine dealing with the skin and its appendages (hair, nails, sweat glands etc). ... Emergency medicine is a branch of medicine that is practiced in a hospital emergency department, in the field (in a modified form; see EMS), and other locations where initial medical treatment of illness takes place. ... A general practitioner (GP) or family physician (FP) is a physician who provides primary care. ... Internal medicine is concerned with the diagnosis and treatment of internal diseases, that is, those that affect internal organs or the body as a whole. ... Neurology is a branch of medicine dealing with disorders of the nervous system. ... Nuclear medicine is a branch of medicine and medical imaging that uses unsealed radioactive substances in diagnosis and therapy. ... // What is occupational medicine Occupational medicine is the branch of clinical medicine most active in the field of occupational health. ... Pathology (from Greek pathos, feeling, pain, suffering; and logos, study of; see also -ology) is the study of the processes underlying disease and other forms of illness, harmful abnormality, or dysfunction. ... Pediatrics (also spelled paediatrics) is the branch of medicine that deals with the medical care of infants, children, and adolescents (from newborn to age 18-21). ... Physical medicine and rehabilitation (PM&R) or physiatry is a branch of medicine dealing with functional restoration of a person affected by physical disability. ... A 1930 Soviet poster propagating breast care. ... Psychiatry is a medical specialty dealing with the prevention, assessment, diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of mental illness – both in itself and in bodily illness (psychiatry in medicine) – such as clinical depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia and anxiety disorders. ... Radiation therapy (or radiotherapy) is the medical use of ionizing radiation as part of cancer treatment to control malignant cells (not to be confused with radiology, the use of radiation in medical imaging and diagnosis). ... Image A: A normal chest X-ray. ... Cardiology is the branch of medicine dealing with disorders of the heart and blood vessels. ... Endocrinology is a branch of medicine dealing with disorders of the endocrine system and its specific secretions called hormones. ... Gastroenterology or gastrology is the medical specialty concerned with the field of digestive diseases. ... Hematology is the branch of medicine that is concerned with blood and its disorders. ... In medicine, infectious disease or communicable disease is disease caused by a biological agent (e. ... Intensive Care Medicine or critical care medicine is concerned with providing greater than ordinary medical care and observation to people in a critical or unstable condition. ... Medical Genetics is the application of genetics to medicine. ... Nephrology is the branch of internal medicine dealing with the study of the function and diseases of the kidney. ... Oncology is the medical subspecialty dealing with the study and treatment of cancer. ... In medicine, pulmonology (aka pneumology) is the specialty that deals with diseases of the lungs and the respiratory tract. ... Rheumatology, a subspecialty of internal medicine, is devoted to the diagnosis and treatment of rheumatic diseases. ... Andrology (from the Greek andros, man) is the medical specialty that deals with male health, particularly relating to the problems of the male reproductive system and urological problems that are unique to men. ... A surgeon operating General Surgery deals with surgical treatment of abdominal organs, e. ... Old German engraving depicting a trepanation, an ancient and still performed neurosurgical procedure Neurosurgery is the surgical discipline focused on treating those central and peripheral nervous system diseases amenable to mechanical intervention. ... Obstetrics and gynaecology (often abbreviated Ob-Gyn in the US and O&G elsewhere) form a single medical specialty and have a combined postgraduate training program. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery is a recognized international training course in specialised Medicine, which requires a minimum length of formation of 5 years for a basic medical training and 4 years for a basic medical and dental training, in the European Union. ... Orthopedic surgery or orthopedics (BE: orthopaedics) is the branch of surgery concerned with acute, chronic, traumatic and recurrent injuries and other disorders of the locomotor system, its musclular and bone parts. ... Otolaryngology is the branch of medicine that specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of ear, nose, throat, and head & neck disorders. ... Pediatric surgery (sometimes spelt paediatric surgery) is a subspecialty of surgery involving the surgery of fetuses, infants, children, adolescents, and young adults. ... Plastic surgery is a general term for operative manual and instrumental treatment which is performed for functional or aesthetic reasons. ... Surgical Oncology is the branch of surgery which focuses on the surgical managment of malignant neoplasms (cancer). ... In medicine, the field of (cardio)thoracic surgery or cardiovascular surgery is involved in the surgical treatment of diseases affecting organs inside the thorax, i. ... An organ transplant is the transplantation of an organ (or part of one) from one body to another, for the purpose of replacing the recipients damaged or failing organ with a working one from the donor. ... Trauma surgeons practice the last subspecialty of General Surgery to be created. ... Urology is the field of medicine that focuses on the urinary tracts of males and females, and on the reproductive system of males. ... Vascular surgery is the branch of surgery that occupies itself with surgical interventions of arteries and veins, as well as conservative therapies for disease of the peripheral vascular system. ...

Ambulatory care is generally classifiable in two groups:

1. Medical institution-based settings, including:
Ambulatory care clinics, ambulatory surgery centers and emergency medical services.

2. Non-medical institution-based settings, including:
School and prison health; vision, dental and pharmaceutical care.