Practice Management
Urgent message: Patients are the ultimate judges of the quality of care you provide, and the opinions are likely to be swayed by factors that have little to do with your clinical expertise or skill. Alan A. Ayers, MBA, MAcc Service industries – from retail stores to restaurants, hotels, and even banks – have embraced the customer’s point of view by meshing contemporary design, cutting-edge technology, and process engineering to develop services that are increasingly …
Read MoreIn early 2008, UCA revamped its annual survey in conjunction with researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard University with the goal of assuring that the UCA Benchmarking Committee’s efforts produced a scientifically valid report.Here we present some of the findings from this landmark survey, to which 436 urgent care centers responded.In this issue: What percentage of physicians working in urgent care are board certified – and how does that compare with primary care? The …
Read MoreJOHN SHUFELDT, MD, JD, MBA, FACEP One of my favorite Seinfeld exchanges is this prickly dialogue between George and his fiancée, Susan, regarding his disdain for (and challenge with) condoms: GEORGE: Oh, no, no … condoms are for single men. The day that we got engaged, I said goodbye to the condom forever. SUSAN: Just once … for the make-up sex. GEORGE: Make-up sex? You have to have that right after the fight, we’re way …
Read MoreQ. What is the official definition of “global period” as it applies to procedures in the urgent care center? When can we code an E/M in addition to the procedure? A. The actual definition of the global period differs slightly when it is defined by the AMA (CPT) and when it is defined by CMS (Medicaid/Medicare). CPT codes are published and copyrighted by the AMA. According to CPT as it applies to services rendered in …
Read MoreIn early 2008, UCA revamped its annual survey in conjunction with researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard University with the goal of assuring that the UCA Benchmarking Committee’s efforts produced a scientifically valid report. Over the coming months in Developing Data, JUCM will present some of the findings from this landmark survey, to which 436 urgent care centers responded. In this issue: What percentage of urgent care physicians rely on clinical guidelines for treatment …
Read MoreJohn Shufeldt, MD, JD, MBA, FACEP Remember the scene in Ghostbusters when Gozer (the Gozarian) asks Ray Stantz if he is a “god?” Stantz, compulsively honest, says, “No.” Gozer says, “Then die,” as he tries to blow them off the roof of the building. After recovering, Peter Venkman yells at Stantz, “If someone asks if you are a god, you say YES!” The question Gozer asked Stantz was a red flag – one of those …
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Urgent message: Unlike many other practice models, urgent care must appeal directly to the customer to stay “top of mind” and be the first option the patient considers when a need arises. Alan A. Ayers, MBA, MAcc Urgent care is a healthcare delivery channel built around the needs of consumers – “retail,” from a marketing perspective – with convenient locations, evening and weekend hours, walk-in service, the capability to treat a range of illness or …
Read MoreIn early 2008, UCA revamped its annual survey in conjunction with researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard University with the goal of assuring that the UCA Benchmarking Committee’s efforts produced a scientifically valid report. Over the coming months in Developing Data, JUCM will present some of the findings from this landmark survey, to which 436 urgent care centers responded. In this issue: How deeply is urgent care integrated within the larger U.S. healthcare system? …
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