The CDC Warns the Current Pandemic Crisis May Be Just the Opening Act

The CDC Warns the Current Pandemic Crisis May Be Just the Opening Act

Even as some states report that the much-discussed “curve” is actually starting to flatten, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warns against perceiving that to mean the worst is over for the U.S. CDC Director Robert Redfield, MD suggested that a second wave could actually be worse than this one if it occurs in the fall, just as the next influenza season is getting started—which some health officials and researchers say is a distinct …

Abstracts in Urgent Care April 2020

COVID-19: The Long View Quarantine Duration in Suspected COVID-19 Bedside Ultrasound Use with COVID-19 Fluoroquinolones and Arrhythmia Isopropyl Alcohol and Nausea Relief Patient Preferences Re: the ED vs Urgent Care  The Nuts and Bolts of COVID-19 Key Points: Most patients with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus that causes COVID-19 experience mild URI symptoms; however, the virus tends to cause disproportionately severe illness in older and chronically ill adults. Treatment is only …

Prescribing Pharmacists: Cheaper and More Accessible Than Urgent Care?

Urgent message: As states move forward with legislation enabling pharmacists to prescribe, not just dispense, the urgent care industry must consider the implications on competition, collaboration and public health. Alan A. Ayers, MBA, MAcc is Chief Executive Officer of Velocity Urgent Care and is Practice Management Editor of The Journal of Urgent Care Medicine.  On February 11, 2020, the Virginia legislature passed bills HB 1506 and SB 1026, respectively, enabling pharmacists to prescribe medications, not …

Patients Are Considering Whether They Really Need to Visit a Healthcare Facility; Could This Be Telemedicine’s Moment?

Patients Are Considering Whether They Really Need to Visit a Healthcare Facility; Could This Be Telemedicine’s Moment?

It’s typical at some point during the flu season for hospitals to re-emphasize that patients should consider going to an urgent care center if they have symptoms of influenza, reserving the ED for truly emergent cases. The COVID-19 pandemic is taking that dynamic to a whole new level, as urgent care centers themselves are wrestling with ways to provide care without inviting in highly contagious people. This begs the question, is this crisis telemedicine’s time …

‘Occupational Exposure’ to COVID-19

Alan A. Ayers, MBA, MAcc is Chief Executive Officer of Velocity Urgent Care and is Practice Management Editor of The Journal of Urgent Care Medicine. Urgent Message: Exposure to coronavirus by an urgent care provider or staff can lead to absence from work, unplanned medical expenses, and invoke short-term disability. Take precautions and create a business infectious disease outbreak response plan that you can share with everyone at your facilities. “Wash your hands!” Anytime you …

Is Florida Looking to Cast Pharmacists as Primary Care Providers?

Is Florida Looking to Cast Pharmacists as Primary Care Providers?

We told you recently about pending legislation in Virginia that would enable pharmacists to prescribe—not just dispense—medications for certain conditions, such as strep throat and influenza. Now comes news that Florida is working on legislation, Senate Bill 714, that would empower pharmacists to essentially conduct a primary care provider-style patient visit for flu. If it becomes law, a patient with flu-like symptoms could go to a drugstore, be given an instant lab test in the …

When Is Tachycardia in a Patient with URI Symptoms a Sign of Something More Serious?

When Is Tachycardia in a Patient with URI Symptoms a Sign of Something More Serious?

Urgent message: Brugada syndrome is a genetic disorder associated with increased incidence of ventricular tachyarrhythmias and sudden cardiac death. There have been cases associated with fever, viral infections, and pneumonias—all conditions urgent care clinicians treat in abundance. This case report demonstrates how urgent care providers can diagnose a potentially lethal disorder when patients are being seen for febrile illnesses. Kathleen B. Raschka, MD Case Presentation A 55-year-old male with a history of hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and …

Myths and Misinformation Are Keeping Patients from Getting Flu Shots. Educate Them!

Myths and Misinformation Are Keeping Patients from Getting Flu Shots. Educate Them!

Millions of confirmed cases and thousands of deaths aren’t enough to convince a lot of Americans that many of their beliefs about influenza and vaccination are just plain wrong. So, more than half fail to get a flu shot and leave themselves and loved ones at increased risk. Clearly, the healthcare community in general has to do a better job of countermanding erroneous conceptions. New data released by the American Academy of Family Physicians may …

Fears Over COVID-19 Are Driving More Patients to Get Flu Shots

Fears Over COVID-19 Are Driving More Patients to Get Flu Shots

As we’ve pointed out—and as has been emphasized in mainstream media reports in recent weeks—far more Americans are at risk for contracting influenza than the coronavirus. The same holds true for associated deaths, as well. At least 15 million people have been diagnosed with flu so far this season. Mortality projections from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention range from 14,000 to 36,000. Compare that with the fact that as of February 17 there …

As Flu Shuts Down an Entire School, Health Officials Recommend Urgent Care Over the ED

As Flu Shuts Down an Entire School, Health Officials Recommend Urgent Care Over the ED

Influenza infections are so rampant in Rexford, NY that an entire elementary school was forced to shut its doors for a day. Student absences were up to 20%, with faculty also calling in sick at such a rate that the school district was hard pressed to find coverage for the students who were in class. Considering that every day sick children and adults walked through the door increased the risk of spreading infection further, the …

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