Practice Management
Despite vast improvements in the management of patient data thanks to the advent of electronic health records, too many people still have a hard time getting access to their own healthcare information, according to the Government Accountability Office. Under the requirements of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), this presents a problem for consumers and providers alike. HIPAA mandates that patients be able to receive a copy of their own medical …
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We’ve shared research showing that certain over-the-counter pain medications can be as effective as opioid medications for acute pain before. Now a study conducted by the School of Dental Medicine at Case Western Reserve University School offers new data indicating the same is true for dental pain. Researchers found that ibuprofen and other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, either alone or in combination with acetaminophen, are actually more effective than opioids for many patients when it comes …
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Cases of hepatitis A—some of them fatal—continue to spread across the country, confounding local and federal health officials. Fourteen states (Arizona, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, New York, Rhode Island, Utah, Washington, West Virginia, and Wisconsin) are the latest to report higher-than-average hep A activity. At least 1,200 cases have been reported nationwide since March 2017, when the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention declared the outbreak; 40 of those patients died as …
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A new report published in The Lancet indicates that many patients presenting to multiple practice settings with lower back pain (LBP) receive less than optimal care, as evidenced by the fact that their symptoms often linger for up to a year. Perhaps worse, some are still prescribed opiates despite multiple studies showing they’re not the best choice for LBP, and they leave patients at increased risk for addiction. Pooling guidelines from the U.S., United Kingdom, …
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Columbia Medical Associates (CMA) of Spokane, WA chose to tackle runaway medical costs by taking a deep dive into the data pool, searching for areas where resources were being expended needlessly. The first glaring point: They had to reduce emergency room utilization without sacrificing patient care. One solution: Teach patients the concept of seeking the “right care at the right time.” That included getting them to realize they could be seen efficiently and receive excellent …
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Tis the season for getting back to the outdoors and all its beauty—as well as its dangers. One of them, as we told you recently, is the boom in the tick population this year. Recognizing that, PhysicianOne Urgent Care offered to provide patients in Massachusetts and Westchester County, NY with free tick removers over a 4-day period last week. In promoting its campaign, PhysicianOne offered tips on avoiding tick bites altogether and explained the range …
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It may come as no surprise to urgent care providers who offer occupational medicine services such as drug testing, but the overall rate of positive drug tests remains high across the board in the U.S. workforce according to new data from Quest Diagnostics. While fewer workers are testing positive for opiate use, results indicating use of cocaine, methamphetamine, and marijuana kept the positive test rate at 4.2%. That’s the same as it was in 2016—which …
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Local news outlets, insurers, and countless urgent care operators have tried to help patients understand when it makes the most sense to go to an urgent care center, as opposed to the emergency room or a retail clinic. Now Consumer Reports, a publication viewed as unimpeachable by many, is taking a crack at it. An article recently published there suggests the urgent care center may be the best choice when a patient needs stitches or …
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Just under a year ago, we told you eClinicalWorks had been fined $155 million for violating the False Claims Act. In addition to the fine, the company was supposed to help customers switch to other vendors at no cost to the customer, or provide customers who chose to stay with free updated versions of eClinicalWorks software. Unfortunately, while the fine has been paid and the whistleblower who brought the situation to light got his money, …
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The opiate crisis and legalization of marijuana in some states has upped the ante for occupational medicine providers charged with conducting drug screens for workers and prospective employees. Patients who may be concerned about their own ability to pass a urine test don’t make it easy sometimes. Some have been known to try to substitute “clean” samples for their own questionable bodily fluids when they know they’re going to be tested. One woman in Denver, …
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