Journal of Urgent Care Medicine

E Coli Outbreak Spreads to Five States

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention—along with the Food and Drug Administration, the Department of Agriculture, and numerous state departments of health—are investigating a growing outbreak of Shiga-producing E coli. Cases have turned up in Georgia, Kentucky, Ohio, Tennessee, and Virginia as of April 4. So far 72 people have been infected; there have been multiple hospitalizations, but no deaths or cases of hemolytic uremic syndrome (a type of kidney failure) have occurred, to …

As Flu Season Hangs On, Be Vigilant for Patients with Influenza and Heart Failure

We’ve told you about a warning from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that influenza season continues to linger, no matter what the calendar says. A new study in JAMA Cardiology serves as reminder that it’s essential—and possibly lifesaving—to remain vigilant for related cardiovascular concerns, especially among heart failure patients with the flu. The authors of the study evaluated the connection between flu activity and hospitalizations for heart failure and myocardial infarction in four …

New Data Show Urgent Care Usage Continues to Grow Faster Than Retail or ED

If fresh data revealed in a new white paper from FAIR Health are any indication, patients and payers are really getting the message that urgent care is often the best alternative for immediate healthcare needs. From 2016 to 2017, overall utilization of urgent care centers grew 14%, double the increase in usage of retail clinics (7%) and sevenfold more than the growth in use of emergency rooms (2%). Retail did outpace urgent care in a …

Burnout—or Moral Injury?

Provider burnout has been the subject of much consternation—and resultant coverage in the medical media, including JUCM (see Provider Burnout Is Real; Show Compassion for Yourself, or Recognizing and Preventing Provider Burnout in Urgent Care in our archive.) Burnout may not be the most accurate or helpful way to describe symptoms like increased apathy toward work, a pervading sense of boredom and stagnation, irritability, and a shortened attention span, however. As detailed in a new …

JUCM Is Again Recognized by the American Society of Healthcare Publication Editors

JUCM, The Journal of Urgent Care Medicine was honored in two categories in the 2019 awards competition by the American Society of Healthcare Publication Editors (ASHPE)—the 16th and 17th times the journal has won a prize in the prestigious national competition. A Pregnant Mother Presenting to Urgent Care with Chickenpox, by Samrana Arefeen, MD and Khalid Aziz, MD garnered a Silver Award in the Best Case History Category. It was published in our December 2018 …

‘Upcoding’ Allegations Cost One Urgent Care Company $2 Million—Don’t Let It Happen to You

An urgent care company has agreed to pay $2 million to settle whistleblower allegations that it submitted inflated claims to Medicare and Medicaid programs—known as “upcoding”—over a 5-year period in two New England states. Specifically, the Department of Justice charged that the company ordered its clinicians to examine and document multiple, specific body systems while taking the medical histories and performing physical exams, whether that level of attention was warranted by the patients’ complaints or …

National Safety Council Stresses the Importance of Workplace Education on Opioids

As we told you in January, new data from the National Safety Council (NSC) revealed that the odds of dying from an unintentional opioid overdose are now greater than those of being killed in a motor vehicle accident. Drug poisoning is the leading cause of unintentional death overall in the U.S. The implications of this go beyond the obvious for clinicians who are called upon to treat patients who present with acute pain related to …

Spring Into Seasonal Promotions

“To everything there is a season,” according to Solomon. He may not have had allergic reactions to spring flora or acute exacerbations of asthma in mind, but he had a point that applies to urgent care centers—and one that will resonate with potential patients. Tower Health, which has urgent care locations throughout Pennsylvania and Delaware, recognized the value of that message and incorporated it into a seasonal online promotional campaign. In taking a patient-education approach …

Hep A Is on the Rise; Here’s What the CDC Wants You to Do

Cases of hepatitis A virus (HAV) in the United States have been creeping up slowly but steadily since 2016 for several years now—to the extent that there are now over then 15,000 active cases across the country. Over half of those (57%) have resulted in hospitalizations, and 140 people have died. In response, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention just issued an advisory on its Health Alert Network for patients, public health departments, healthcare …

UCA Webinar: Are You Prepared for Patients Who Present with Life-Threatening ACS?

Urgent care has made its mark on the U.S. healthcare system by offering high-quality care on a walk-in basis, with one of the guiding principles being that it’s an appropriate setting for any patient who is not experiencing life- or limb-threatening symptoms. That doesn’t mean patients with that level of complaint never walk through the door, however. Patients experiencing chest pain may be inclined to present to urgent care if it’s the closest healthcare facility, …