Matthew Sztajnkrycer, M.D., Ph.D., Mayo Clinic
Question: Can an emergency room physician determine more quickly than my primary care doctor that I have seasonal or swine flu (H1N1)?
Answer: In most circumstances, there really isn't going to be a significant difference between going to your primary care doctor or the emergency department, in terms of getting test results. Whether you go to the primary care doctor or the emergency department, they're going to take a swab -- it's usually a nasal swab -- and they're going to send it off for testing.
That testing is institution-dependent, but it's going to take the same amount of time whether the sample is taken in the emergency department versus in the primary care physician's office.
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