Journal of Urgent Care Medicine

Creating a Health Surveillance Product Line

Urgent message: Keeping patients able to perform their jobs is critical to the success of an urgent care occupational medicine program. Donna Lee Gardner, RN, MS, MBA To best meet the needs of employers, an urgent care occupational medicine (UCOM) clinic should feature five basic product lines: • health surveillance • injury/loss management • rehabilitation • prevention services • on-site services This article will address the first of these product lines, health surveillance; the other …

Developing Data: March, 2008

As an emerging distinct practice environment, urgent care is in the early stages of building a data set specific to its norms and practices. In Developing Data, JUCM will offer results not only from UCA’s annual benchmarking surveys, but also from research conducted elsewhere to present an expansive view of the healthcare marketplace in which urgent care seeks to strengthen its presence. In this issue: How do patients view the importance of “emotional support” from …

Readers’ Coding Inquiries

DAVID STERN, MD (Practice Velocity) Q.How would you define the difference between an expanded problem-focused exam and the detailed exam in the 1995 evaluation and management coding guidelines? – Question submitted by Eddie Stahl, Medical Staff Director, Tennessee Urgent Care Associates A.For both the expanded problem-focused exam (EPF) and the detailed exam, the provider must document between two and seven body systems. The difference is that the EPF exam requires a “limited” exam of a …

Learning to be Direct in Sales Negotiations

In 2008, we live in a vastly different world in which we feel information-saturated, overburdened, and pressed for time. It is a world in which long dialogue is generally a nuisance and short, to-the-point interchange is embraced. It is a world that values Headline News, USA Today, and Internet blogs more than traditional news shows or in-depth books. In short, we live in a world in which people want things short, simple, and digestible. That …

What the Gray Haired Never Shared

JOHN SHUFELDT, MD, JD, MBA, FACEP For some reason, it is likely that no one with gray hair ever sat you down and shared with you some secrets to longevity, productivity, and career success in medicine. Why we in medicine tend to “eat our young” remains a mystery to me. If you have seen the movie 300 or read the book Gates of Fire, you understand that we tend to act very “Spartan-like.” I am …

Developing Data: February, 2008

As an emerging distinct practice environment, urgent care is in the early stages of building a data set specific to its norms and practices. In Developing Data, JUCM will offer results not only from UCA’s annual benchmarking surveys, but also from research conducted elsewhere to present an expansive view of the healthcare marketplace in which urgent care seeks to strengthen its presence. In this issue: How did the corporate structure/organizational models among participants in UCA’s …

Deciphering Payor Language and Other Challenges

DAVID STERN, MD (Practice Velocity) Q.Many procedures, such as injections and fracture care, are reported to patients as “surgery.” Patients sometimes accuse us of false billing, as they don’t consider these procedures to be a “surgery.” How can we fix this problem? A.All third-party payors have installed computer software programs that have code descriptions loaded for each CPT code. Many of these code descriptions are hard to understand, and sometimes they are not truly accurate. CPT …

Public Speaking Skills Enhance Professional Standing and Proficiency

Whether you are a clinician or a sales professional—or both, as is often the case in the urgent care occupational medicine arena—it is likely that you will find yourself in front of an audience giving a talk at some point. The topic may be a clinical one or something intended to get the audience to employ your professional services; either way, proficiency as a public speaker will greatly improve your chance of making the most …

Insulating Your Practice from Sexual Harassment Claims

JOHN SHUFELDT, MD, JD, MBA, FACEP Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of Law describes sexual harassment as a form of employment discrimination consisting of unwelcome verbal or physical conduct directed at an employee because of his or her sex. Quid pro quo sexual harassment occurs when a condition of future or current employment is predicated upon fulfilling sexual demands. Finally, hostile environment sexual harassment occurs when the harassment has the effect of interfering with the victim’s work performance …

Boosting Revenue by Working Harder—or Smarter?

Urgent message: With careful consideration and disciplined planning, ancillary services can add to your bottom line without significantly adding to your workload. Alan A. Ayers, MBA, MAcc Practice Velocity Could Charles Dickens’ discourse provide a better depiction of the urgent care business today? Unprecedented growth in recent years proves the value of a healthcare delivery model like urgent care, based on consumer needs for affordability and convenience. But urgent care is not immune from challenges …