Journal of Urgent Care Medicine

Creating Value By Adding Physical Therapy to Urgent Care – PART II: Tactical Considerations

Urgent message: Part 1 of this article, in the June issue, looked at initial considerations for enhancing urgent care profitability by providing physical therapy services. In Part 2, the authors address tactical considerations, from revenue to staffing models. LAUREL STOIMENOFF, PT and HILARY HELLMAN, SLP Babe Ruth said, “Yesterday’s home runs don’t win today’s games.” Consumers have gravitated to ondemand medical services and the market has responded. Urgent care centers now face competition, not only …

Creating Value By Adding Physical Therapy to Urgent Care – Part 1: Initial Considerations & Rationale

Urgent message: Many urgent care clinics face new competition and the landscape for reimbursement is changing. One tactic for enhancing profitability is to consider the addition of new services. Adding Physical Therapy to your practice can result in more satisfied patients, better clinical outcomes and a stronger bottom line. LAUREL STOIMENOFF, PT and HILARY HELLMAN, SLP Eighty percent of Americans will experience low back pain at some time in their lives. Many of these patients …

Establishing Your Online Presence: Website Basics for Urgent Care Operators

Urgent message: Establishing a practice website takes careful planning and execution but it can enhance traditional marketing efforts by providing a central repository of relevant information for prospective patients. ALAN A. AYERS, MBA, MAcc Practice Velocity When consumers experience a minor illness or injury, numerous questions arise, such as “What do these symptoms mean?” “Can I do something about this myself?” and “What kind of help do I need, where do I get it, and …

Dealing With Employee Termination: Smart Strategies for Optimizing Your Team

Urgent message: Letting employees go is never easy. This article offers tips for protecting your business and yourself if termination is necessary. Among the key recommendations are compiling documentation and seeking legal advice. ALAN A. AYERS, MBA, MAcc Practice Velocity Letting an employee go, whether due to job performance or economic necessity, is never a pleasant situation. Although an urgent care center strives to provide high-quality patient care, it’s also a business. This means that …

Language Interpretation Services in the Urgent Care Center

Urgent message: Cultivating trust requires good communication and if a language barrier stands between patient and provider, not only are clinical outcomes jeopardized, but the urgent care operation can be subject to legal liability. ALAN A. AYERS, MBA, MAcc Practice Velocity The demographics of the United States are rapidly changing. Today a language other than English is spoken in 55 million households, 67% of which speak Spanish, and an estimated 19% of Americans have Limited …

Offering Patient WiFi in the Urgent Care Center

Urgent message: The costs of and barriers to adding WiFi to an urgent care center are low and the benefits include a better patient experience and improved perception of wait times. ALAN A. AYERS, MBA, MAcc, Experity WiFi is now ubiquitous. Step into most any coffee house, theme restaurant, library, shopping mall or other service establishment and you’ll find that Internet access is readily available and usually free of charge. Many hospitals have also introduced …

Understanding the Landscape of Occupational Medicine

Urgent message: Expanding into occupational medicine requires a long-term commitment and willingness to respond to employer and employee needs. ALAN A. AYERS, MBA, MAcc, Experity Urgent care providers have conventionally defined their offering as “treatment of acutely rising episodic medical conditions.” However, widespread acceptance of the urgent care business model-retail-facing locations, extended hours, and walk-in service—has led many urgent care centers to expand into longitudinal primary care as well as occupational medicine. Specifically, when people …

Making the Most of Locum Tenens in Your Urgent Care

Urgent message: Despite the best staff planning, urgent care centers sometimes need to turn to locum tenens firms to fill the “bench.” Understanding the challenges these firms face is one key to success. ALAN A. AYERS, MBA, MAcc, Experity Regardless of how aesthetically pleasing an urgent care facility, how convenient its hours, how creative its marketing, or how sophisticated its technology, the ultimate “product” is its clinicians and the solutions they provide for patients’ immediate …

Practice Management