Over half of workers in the United States are “not engaged” in their jobs, and another 17% are “actively disengaged,” according to a Gallup poll. In other words, only about three in every 10 employees are really on point at any given time in a workplace—including, possibly, your urgent care center. The data also show, however, that organizations that make an effort to foster employee engagement have happier, more satisfied employees. And it’s not because …
Read MoreEmory Adds 20 Urgent Care Locations Through New Partnerships
Emory Healthcare has found the urgent care marketplace hospitable and is taking on new partners to secure a more prominent seat at the table. The Atlanta-based company is inviting Peachtree Immediate Care and SmartCare Urgent Care into its Emory Health Network. Once Peachtree’s 16 locations and SmartCare’s four clinics are fully on board, Emory will be able to offer urgent care at 60 locations throughout Atlanta. The locations will share an EMR to facilitate smooth …
Read MoreHealth Data Management IDs 30 Largest Urgent Care Chains
Urgent care watchers know the industry has been growing at a steady clip for years, with the latest surge fueled by patients and payers eager to get quality care for a fraction of the price of a trip to the emergency room. Some urgent care operators focus more on growth than others, of course. Health Data Management and Merchant Medicine teamed up to identify just which 30 urgent care chains have grown to be the …
Read MoreMedicaid ‘Experiment’ Fails to Reduce Use of ED
A new study of the Oregon Health Insurance Experiment shows the program has fallen short on one of the key benefits promised—namely, that emergency room traffic would be reduced if state Medicaid rolls were opened up to low-income adults through a lottery system. Nearly 90,000 residents signed up for the lottery, but EDs are as crowded as ever. It’s beyond question that urgent care could reduce the congestion, but most Medicaid programs don’t offer urgent …
Read MoreTop Reasons for 2016 ED Visits Show Overlap with Urgent Care Strengths
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates more than 136 million people end up in an emergency room every year in the United States. Of those, 2.1 million are admitted to a critical care unit. Many of the rest could be treated just as well—and much more conveniently and less expensively—in a full-service urgent care center. Consider that the following are among the most common reasons for visits to the ED: Skin infections Cuts …
Read MoreStates Report First Flu Cases—and Multiple Deaths
The flu season has barely begun, with the peak not expected for at least 2 months, but there’s already an uptick in reported cases—and multiple deaths—around the country. Just last week, Nevada reported three fatalities and North Carolina reported its first of the 2016–2017 season. The grim news is an opportunity to stress to patients the importance of getting their annual flu shot early, as suggested by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Ask …
Read MoreFive Marketing Measures that Matter for Your Urgent Care Success
URGENT MESSAGE: When considering the options of expanding an urgent care center, it is difficult to justify allocating money toward marketing campaigns because the return on investment is not definitive. However, correctly understanding and effectively implementing marketing metrics can be fundamental in strategically building continuously improving—and successful—urgent care centers. As an urgent care owner, determining the value of marketing is difficult because a consumer’s perception about a company cannot be quantified. In any industry, a …
Read MoreShould Reproductive-Age Women Receive Opioids?
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notes that use of opioids in pregnant women can lead to birth defects, suggesting that alternatives for pain management of severe pain should be considered. In addition, more thought needs to be given about the wisdom of providing opioids to women who are of childbearing age and not using birth control. However, a study published in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report found that opioids are prescribed to over …
Read MoreUrgent Care Continues to Boost the U.S. Construction Industry
A new survey of hospital construction projects points to the ongoing growth of urgent care as one driver of a construction boom within the healthcare industry. In fact, urgent care, outpatient facilities, and medical specialty complexes are the key contributors to significant increases in new construction. Health Facilities Management’s 2016 Hospital Construction Survey indicated the boom is on track to continue, too; 35% of respondents said they expect to have a medical office project in …
Read MoreUrgent Care Pushes CMS to Adopt Patient Copays Instead of Coinsurance
The Urgent Care Association (UCA) sent a letter to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in favor of lowering the copay patients would be responsible for when visiting an urgent care visit, effective in 2018. The changes would affect the cost-sharing structure for “standardized options” (ie, Simple Choice plans) that plan issuers offer in the individual insurance marketplace. Standardized options are intended to simplify the consumer plan selection process; each has a single …
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