Originally Posted by aztimm

I'm a swimmer and sometimes get water trapped in my ears. For a while I was going to urgent care 2x a year to get treated. I'm in the US, and kind of prefer to just use the CVS MinuteClinic. They normally have LPN's, so can write prescriptions, and have been very helpful (as opposed to a traditional urgent care, where a nurse will see you, take down symptoms, then you have to wait for a doctor to actually look in your ears, then the nurse comes back to treat the condition, and the doctor has to verify it all looks good). An LPN can diagnose and treat, so it saves tons of time. Then if you need a prescription, the pharmacy is right there to get it.

So in short--yes, I would recommend for a first timer to go to an urgent care.

If this is a recurring issue for you, then I would recommend chatting with your normal doctor during a visit. Years ago I got ear infections quite often and they gave me drops that changed the pH in my ears, and suddenly no more infections. So there could be preventative options.