Journal of Urgent Care Medicine

Did Your Urgent Care Center See More Tick-Related Visits Last Year? You’re Not Alone

Using pooled data from state and local health departments across the country, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that 2017 saw a record number of medical visits due to tick-borne disease in the United States. Including cases of Lyme disease, anaplasmosis/ehrlichiosis, spotted fever rickettsiosis (including Rocky Mountain spotted fever), babesiosis, tularemia, and Powassan virus disease, there were 59,349 visits last year—a 22% increase from 2016. The CDC noted that there were probably far …

NEJM Catalyst: Urgent Care is a Key ‘Disruptor’ of Primary Care

Starting with the premise that “primary care is at the vortex of massive changes driven by cost-control pressures and reimbursement transformation,” an article in NEJM Catalyst proceeds to explain that urgent care is a key disrupter of primary care as we know it. In essence, the authors argue that the requirements imposed on primary care practices are in conflict with patient preferences, leaving the primary care field in a no-win situation. In regard to the …

CDC: Mumps Cases Surpass 2017’s Total, with New York and Michigan Leading the Way

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is alerting healthcare providers that confirmed cases of mumps are becoming more prevalent, with 142 cases reported across the U.S. That’s already more than were seen in all of 2018. Michigan and New York are seeing a disproportionate number of those cases, based on data from local and state health officials there. Michigan already has more cases this year (15) than it has seen in any full calendar …

Flu Isn’t the Only Condition with a Season

It’s painfully clear, from the frenzied media reports to your case load, that we’re heading into the heart of influenza season. A new report from Columbia University’s Department of Environmental Health Sciences, published in PLOS Pathogens, claims there’s a seasonality to many other infectious disease states as well, however. Many of those identified in the report are likely to present to urgent care centers. The paper identifies 69 diseases that have a fairly distinct “season,” …

The ED and Urgent Care World According to Yelp

Urgent care centers deliver a higher level of service than emergency rooms, though some patients perceive that the ED offers a higher level of care, according to a report from researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. The data reflect analysis of five-star and one-star Yelp reviews (the highest and lowest scores, respectively) for urgent care centers and EDs. Patients giving five stars after a visit to the ED valued …

Urgent Care Operator Ochsner Dials Up American Well for App-Based, DTC ‘Anywhere Care’

Ochsner Health System is taking its commitment to providing telehealth in an urgent care environment one step further by launching Ochsner Anywhere Care, a 24-hour, direct-to-consumer telehealth service it will operate in partnership with American Well. Patients will be able to “see” a provider at any time of day or night through an mHealth app on any enabled mobile device when urgent care needs arise. If follow-up care is needed, the online clinician will refer …

New DEA Report: Prescription Drugs Are Still to Blame for the Most Overdose Deaths

Urgent care operators and occupational medicine providers alike should be aware that prescription opioids continue to be found to blame more often than other substances in overdose deaths in the United States. The Drug Enforcement Administration’s just-released 2018 National Drug Threat Assessment reveals that controlled prescription drugs are the second most commonly abused substance, making the number of deaths slightly out of proportion to the incidence of abuse. The DEA report shows fentanyl and other …

Acute Flaccid Myelitis is Rare, but Growing; CDC Wants You to Learn More About It

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is devoting more resources to gathering and sharing intelligence about acute flaccid myelitis (AFM) as the number of cases continues to rise across the United States. Next up in the CDC’s information campaign will be a Clinician Outreach and Communication Activity (COCA) call next Tuesday, November 13, 2 to 3 pm Eastern. AFM, whose symptoms have been likened to a number of other viruses, including polio, tends to …

Could Urgent Care Be the Next Step for CVS, Post Aetna Deal?

The retail clinic market might not be the only one affected by CVS Health’s union with Aetna. CVS CEO Larry Merlo has been talking about finding ways for his company to work more closely with physicians for the past year or so. With the Aetna all but in the bag, it may not be too long before that possibility manifests with a dive into the urgent care pool, if a new post on the HealthLeaders …

Urgent Care Centers: Get on Message for Antibiotic Awareness Week

Antibiotic stewardship has become something of a buzz phrase in many healthcare settings. Don’t forget what it really means or what’s at stake, though. According to the latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, at least 30% of antibiotics in the United States are prescribed unnecessarily. And for every misguided script, the risk of antibiotic resistance increases. At least 2 million people become infected with bacteria that are resistant to antibiotics every …