urgencia

Urgencia is a noun in Spanish that denotes the condition of needing to be dealt with promptly or with priority. It can refer to a subjective feeling of pressure to act quickly, as in the urgency of a deadline, or to an objective assessment of priority in decision-making, logistics, or healthcare. The term derives from Latin urgere, meaning to press or urge, and is cognate with the English word urgency.

In medical contexts, urgencia commonly denotes urgent care or the emergency medical setting. In many Spanish-speaking countries, the term is used as "servicio de urgencias" or "urgencias" to designate the hospital department that handles time-sensitive illnesses and injuries. The service provides triage to prioritize patients by severity and often operates 24/7. Medical usage distinguishes between "urgente" (requiring prompt attention) and "emergencia" (an event posing immediate risk), though in common language the terms can overlap.

In everyday language, "urgencia" can describe the perceived necessity of actions, projects, or decisions. It is frequently paired with verbs such as "tener" (to have) or "sentir" (to feel) as in "tener prisa" or "con urgencia," though the latter implies immediacy rather than a deadline. Synonyms include prisa, apremio, necesidad apremiante.

Overall, urgencia captures both the subjective sense of pressure to act quickly and the objective systems developed to address time-sensitive situations, especially in healthcare and organizational contexts.