Remember, Urgent Care is a Global Phenomenon—and JUCM is Part of It

We tend to look at the urgent care industry as an American phenomenon (which is understandable, given the total emersion necessary to keep pace with patient demands and maintaining compliance with a bevy of regulations issued by payers, state boards, HIPAA…). However, the same revolution that has been taking place in the U.S. for decades is ongoing in countries around the world. New Zealand, for example, has a very active urgent care marketplace and a strong professional society in the Royal New Zealand College of Urgent Care (RNZCUC). Among its educational vehicles is Urgent Bite, a weekly podcast series that seeks out urgent care experts to answer specific questions relevant to urgent care providers. JUCM Editor-in-Chief Josh Russell, MD, MSc, FAAEM, FACEP was one of those guests recently, sitting down (virtually) with host Guy Melrose, MB, ChB for an episode entitled Low Risk Antibiotic Reactions. Melrose is a practicing urgent care physician and a member of the RNZCUC’s Executive Committee (of which JUCM Editorial Board member David Gollogly, MB, ChB, FCUCP is the chair). A longer discussion with Russell is being prepared for release, but in the meantime you can listen to him and Melrose discuss the question of whether it’s acceptable to prescribe an antibiotic for a patient who reports having a previous reaction here.