Highline Medical Center has announced that it will bring urgent care services to Des Moines this fall.

Urgent Care will open on Tuesday, Nov. 1, adjacent to Des Moines Family Medicine on Marine View Drive. The urgent care center is open 7 a.m.- 9 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m.- 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sundays.

Urgent care centers typically treat a variety of minor illnesses and injuries, from colds and flu to sprains and strains. Urgent care isn't a replacement for your regular doctor, medical center officials emphasize.

But if a patient doesn't have a doctor, or the doctor isn't available, and the patient wants to be seen right away, it can be a great solution, they said.

Highline staffers remind patients if it is a life-threatening emergency, call 9-1-1 or get to the nearest ER. Highline's s ER in Burien provides emergency services around the clock. Highline Medical Center has posted a list of when to go to the emergency room and when to go to the urgent care on its website.

To learn more, visit www.HighlineMedicalCenter.org.

Highline is also opening an urgent care unit on Oct. 3 in West Seattle, adjacent to Highline Medical Group's West Seattle Family Medicine in the Alaska Junction business district.