Recently I had an emergency -- a digestive emergency of sorts.

As I left the hospital, I noticed some lightning in the distant sky. I drove to one of the drive-through chicken places. The faceless voice from the intercom said “Sorry sir, we are plum out of chicken.”

“What! No chicken of any kind?”

“Nope, only special orders after 10 p.m.”

I left. I then drove to a fast food burger place as the rain began to fall and my hunger and temper began to rise. I entered and stood at the quiet counter. Again no face.

I waited a reasonable length of time, pondering my rejection and my evolving malnutrition. I checked to be sure I had shoes and a shirt, but I still was not served. I left for a nearly empty burger place next door. By now it was pouring rain, so I stayed in the car.

Just as I was about to pull into the “order here” lane, the biggest RV I have ever seen whipped into line. It was carrying an entire little league baseball team. They all ordered -- one by one. I was trapped like a rat as another car pulled up behind me, blocking my escape from the delay ahead of me. Finally, I ordered.

To be efficient, I simply said “Number 5 and a Coke please.” Using the last molecules of glucose in my veins, I drove to the pick-up window, where I had to first pay then await the delivery of the food of life through my car window opening. Each time I opened the window I was showered with a rain that would have worried Noah. I slowly drove home clutching my wet fries in my dry right hand. I arrived home at 11:30 p.m. My wife reported that she had finished some great soup. I had handled my emergency very badly. I should have done things differently.

We all have medical emergencies. Some go better than others. Each year 100 million visits are made to the emergency rooms. Ten percent of all medical care visits are to emergency rooms. In Savannah 100,000 ER visits were made last year.

Since only 20 percent led to hospital admission, most were not the life-and-death stuff seen on TV every night. Many visits are for non-urgent medical problems.

ER’s are a huge success as far as patients are concerned. They are open at night, on weekends and after church. You cannot be turned away for any reason. Care is comprehensive. You can get a CT scan as easily as two aspirins.

However, the delays can be terrific. Triage systems require that the sickest patients be seen first. If you have a cold, and a diabetic camp bus hits the hemophiliac camp bus, you may have an eight-hour wait. In Savannah, the average time you will spend in an ER is three hours.

Also, many - but not all - observers conclude that ER medicine is too expensive. The average charge for an ER visit is roughly $400. All three local hospitals make an effort to hold down costs and wait times by providing “fast track” or “urgent care” units which provide care for the least seriously ill patients.

However, there is unfortunately too much evidence to deny the fact that the ER is the only place many patients may expect to see a physician within 48 hours following the onset of an illness for which help is needed.

In one study of the problem, only 44 percent of available practice sites (clinics, offices, urgent care centers) would see a Medicaid patient within 48 hours.

The case is worse for the entirely uninsured. Even if you are insured, only 60 percent of private practice offices could see you as a new patient within 48 hours. Hence, the ER may be the only alternative for care.

However, the most common mistake made by the ER visitor is the failure to contact their family physician before going to the ER. He or she may provide much-needed guidance and possibly make the ER visit unnecessary.

ER staff physicians and office-based physicians plead for patients to make persistent effort to reach the family or specialist physician who knows their health status before seeking help in the local emergency room.

The guidelines for seeking ER care are similar to seeking help for a hunger crisis. Go home; don’t run to an ER thinking you will be served quickly. Call your physician, a clinic or an office to seek an early appointment.

Finally, have some hot soup. It usually solves the problem.