Restaurants take reservations and now some emergency rooms do too.
ER doctors at those hospitals say it helps patients get seen quicker and more efficiently, but critics argue that non-life threatening cases shouldn't get that kind of priority.
Instead of racing for the hospital, Jeanie Cantrell got on the Internet and booked an ER reservation which cost her $25. The paperwork was done before she even arrived.
"I wasn't feeling very well and I had been sick all night long," says Cantrell. "And it took about 45 minutes and I'm here in the bed being seen."
Loma Linda University Medical Center is one of eight Southern California hospitals using an online appointment system for the ER.
"We came in and I was thinking it was going to be hours," says one patient. "I've gone to other ERs where I've waited up to 9 hours."
Medical directors across the nation have been calling Dr. Robert Steele for advice on Loma Linda's "quick ER."
"What it does is it shifts that waiting time slightly for that non-emergent patient, allows us to see those groups," says Dr. Steele. "It helps clear out our waiting room, keeps those folks from not being exposed to infectious diseases, keeps those folks in a comfortable quiet environment."
KING 5 News couldn't find any hospitals in Washingotn offering a "quick ER," but one of them advised if you want to avoid long-wait times for a non-life-threatening medical issue that occurs after hours, don't go to a hospital designated as a trauma center.
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