Journal of Urgent Care Medicine

Practice Management

 

Building Ethical Organizations and Teams

By bnapolitano  /  September 1, 2018
Alan A. Ayers, MBA, MAcc is Chief Executive Officer of Velocity Urgent Care and is Practice Management Editor of The…
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Building Ethical Organizations and Teams

Handling Paid Time-Off in Overtime and Unpaid Leave Situations

By bnapolitano  /  September 10, 2018
Urgent message: Paid time-off (PTO) is a common benefit among urgent care providers, but when urgent care operators benefit from…
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Handling Paid Time-Off in Overtime and Unpaid Leave Situations

Rhabdomyolysis in a Previously Healthy 33-Year-Old Man

By bnapolitano  /  September 1, 2018
Urgent message: Life-threatening degrees of rhabdomyolysis can be seen in young, healthy patients with stable presentation and nearly normal examination…
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Rhabdomyolysis in a Previously Healthy 33-Year-Old Man

The Approach to the Hypertensive Patient in the Urgent Care Setting

By bnapolitano  /  September 1, 2018
Urgent message: Previously undiagnosed hypertension is common among ambulatory patients, and urgent care providers are often the first to recognize…
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The Approach to the Hypertensive Patient in the Urgent Care Setting

A 48-Year-Old Female Who ‘Rolled’ Her Ankle

By bnapolitano  /  September 17, 2018
  The patient is a 48-year-old woman with acute pain after “rolling” her left foot while dancing in high heels…
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A 48-Year-Old Female Who ‘Rolled’ Her Ankle

Urgent Care News

UCA Webinar: Lower Costs and Increase Quality by Minimizing Staff Turnover

When a valued employee leaves your organization of their own free will, it costs your …
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New Study Shows Too Many Unsupported Opioid Prescriptions

A new study just published in the Annals of Internal Medicine reveals that almost 30% …
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Spectrum Health Expands the Role of Medical Assistants—and Eliminates Urgent Care RNs

It’s been the belief of some urgent care operators and thought leaders that medical assistants …
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Free JUCM Webinar Explores the Viability—and Profitability—of Ultrasound n Urgent Care

The Journal of Urgent Care Medicine’s Innovators in Urgent Care webinar series will roll on …
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Carefully Consider—and Communicate—Payment Policies

You can save yourself major headaches—and maybe even a lot of bad press—by ensuring the …
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Web Exclusive Articles

Handling Paid Time-Off in Overtime and Unpaid Leave Situations

Urgent message: Paid time-off (PTO) is a common benefit among urgent care providers, but when …
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Facebook Friendship Between Leaders and Employees: A Good Idea?

Urgent message: Social media strengthens friendships through the sharing of life experiences and common interests, …
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Staying Power: How to Retain Your Best People

Urgent message: In increasingly competitive labor markets, ongoing success requires keeping your best people happy …
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Improving Patient Flow in Urgent Care Through Online Appointment Scheduling

Urgent message: Convenient, quality, same-day care is one of the hallmarks of the urgent care …
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How To Add a Personal Touch to Your Urgent Care Practice

Urgent message: Traditional marketing and advertising only goes so far in building an urgent care …
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Clinical Articles

The Approach to the Hypertensive Patient in the Urgent Care Setting

Urgent message: Previously undiagnosed hypertension is common among ambulatory patients, and urgent care providers are often the first to recognize …
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Approach to Fever and Drooling in Infants and Toddlers

Urgent message: Typical drooling is no cause for alarm in infants and toddlers. However, excessive drooling accompanied by fever or …
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Head Injuries and Cirrhosis: Does everyone need a CT Scan?

Head Injuries and Cirrhosis: Does everyone need a CT Scan?

Urgent message: The decision of whether or not to image a patient with a head injury has significant implications—for the …
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Concussion Management in Urgent Care: A Primer for Implementation

Urgent message: Sports-related concussions are particularly dangerous injuries due to their complex nature and difficulties associated with diagnostic and return-to-play …
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Practice Management Articles

Building Ethical Organizations and Teams

Alan A. Ayers, MBA, MAcc is Chief Executive Officer of Velocity Urgent Care and is Practice Management Editor of The …
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Establishing Success Habits for Leaders and Organizations

Alan A. Ayers, MBA, MAcc is Chief Executive Officer of Velocity Urgent Care and is Practice Management Editor of The …
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developing-reimbursement

Developing a Reimbursement Policy for CME and Other Employee Expenses

Urgent message: Every urgent care center should have a clear policy outlining which employee expenses, including CME-related expenses, it reimburses …
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Thinking Differently About Paid Time Off

Alan A. Ayers, MBA, MAcc is Chief Executive Officer of Velocity Urgent Care, LLC and is Practice Management Editor of …
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Insights in Images Challenges

A 48-Year-Old Female Who ‘Rolled’ Her Ankle

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A 58-Year-Old Female With A New Infusion Port And Shoulder Pain

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A 35-Year-Old Man With Thumb Pain After A Fall

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A 20-Year-Old Male With Nasal Pain Following An Injury

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ECG Challenge: A 90-Year-Old Woman With Intermittent Lightheadedness

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A 25-Year-Old Man With Shoulder Pain After A Fall

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JUCM CAREER CENTER

Download Past Issues

September 2018 : Looking Past the Complaint to Make a Life-Saving Discovery

CASE REPORTS

Rhabdomyolysis in a Previously Healthy 33-Year-Old Man

Urgent message: Life-threatening degrees of rhabdomyolysis can be seen in young, healthy patients with stable presentation …
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Leg Pain in a 34-Year-Old Man

Urgent message: The ability to differentiate deep vein thrombosis from other diagnoses such as cellulitis is …
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Cervical Facetitis—An Unusual Cause of Neck Pain

Urgent message: Though neck pain is a common complaint among patients presenting to urgent care centers, …
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An Uncommon Clinical Presentation of Ovarian Torsion

Urgent message: Abdominal pain is an extremely common complaint in the urgent care setting. The differential …
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Cardiopulmonary Emergency Masquerading as Gastrointestinal Symptoms

Nihar B. Gala, MD Urgent message: The ability to distinguish between urgent and truly emergent conditions …
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HEALTH LAW

HIPAA-Compliant Disclosure in Workers’ Compensation

Alan A. Ayers, MBA, MAcc is Chief Executive Officer of Velocity Urgent Care and is Practice …
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Which Way to Go: The Pros and Cons of 1099 vs W-2 Income for Urgent Care Physicians

Urgent message: To avoid running afoul of labor and tax laws, urgent care operators should understand …
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Effectively Utilizing 90-Day Probationary Periods for New Employees

Urgent message: A 90-day probationary period suspends the standard employment rules for new employees, enabling them …
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New Rules for Beneficiary Inducements at Urgent Care Centers

Urgent message: Unlike other retail businesses, which commonly provide gift cards and other incentives in marketing …
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The Importance and Validity of Nondisclosure and Nonsolicitation Clauses for Urgent Care Center Owners

Alan A. Ayers, MBA, MAcc is Chief Executive Officer of Velocity Urgent Care, LLC and is …
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CLINICAL CHALLENGES

A Runner with a History of Foot Pain

Case The patient is a 27-year-old male who presents to urgent care with foot pain, for which he says there …
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A 61-Year-Old Man Who Is Lightheaded and Dizzy

Case The patient is a 61-year-old man who presents to the urgent care center with lightheaded dizziness, which he says …
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A 28-Year-Old Man Complaining of Tiredness, Myalgia, and Sore Throat

Case The patient is a 28-year-old man who presents to urgent care with a fever and complaints of tiredness, myalgia, …
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A 52-Year-Old Man with Recent-Onset Dizziness

Case A 52-year-old man presented to urgent care with a 2-day history of dizziness. He denies chest pain, syncope, shortness …
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A Toddler with a Sudden Limp

Case The patient is a 3-year-old female who is brought to your urgent care center by her parents, who report …
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OCCUPATIONAL MEDICINE

New Quest Diagnostics Data Show Drug Use Among Workers Remains High

It may come as no surprise to urgent care providers who offer occupational medicine services such as drug testing, but …
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Beware Patients Who’ll Go to Great—Great—Lengths to Pass Drug Tests

The opiate crisis and legalization of marijuana in some states has upped the ante for occupational medicine providers charged with …
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Proposed Law Could Diminish Need for Workplace Drug Testing in California

As we’ve discussed here previously, the more widespread legalization of marijuana use around the country is presenting any number of …
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Telemedicine Meets Occ Med Rehab in New Concentra Initiative in California

Workers who need to rehab injuries can now do so without schlepping to a physical therapy practice under a new …
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Foundation of Occupational Medicine in the Urgent Care Setting

Urgent message: Much has been written about the integration of occupational medicine into urgent care practice. However, doing so successfully …
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Revenue Cycle Management

2019 International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-10-CM) Codes

October 1, 2018 will bring 279 new codes to ICD-10-CM. Combined with 51 deactivated codes (and 143 revised codes), that …
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Clarifying the Coding for Splint and Cast Application by Nonphysicians

Q: I would like clarification on an article I read in The Journal of Urgent Care Medicine (JUCM) online archive …
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New Medicare Cards

Q: The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) started issuing new Medicare cards to beneficiaries in April of this …
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Reduction in Reimbursements for Modifier -25

Q: Last fall, Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield sent a notice to physicians in several states regarding their intent to …
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The Incidentals of ‘Incident-to’ Billing

Q: I plan to hire physician assistants and other nonphysician providers in my urgent care clinic. I understand that I …
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DEVELOPING DATA

Warning: The Future of Patient Engagement May Require Straying Beyond Your Comfort Zone

Urgent care has faced many challenges since its inception—starting with trying to get healthcare consumers and insurers to understand what …
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Urgent Care Ownership: Corporations on the Rise, Physicians and Hospitals on the Decline

The urgent care industry—always revolutionary compared with other practice settings—is undergoing a revolution of its own. First, entrepreneurial physicians ruled …
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One More Look at Head Injury Presentations in Urgent Care

In this issue, we’ve offered an urgent care perspective on which patients presenting with head injury are most likely to …
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When is On-Demand Care Most In-Demand?

The combination of convenience and quality is the hallmark of the urgent care industry. As time goes on and patients …
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A Snapshot of Flu Vaccination Rates

The ongoing 2017–18 flu season is already one of the worst in recent memory. Recently released data from the Centers …
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Abstracts in Urgent Care

Abstracts in Urgent Care – September 2018

WHO Announces ICD-11, Coming Next Year Key point: New set will reflect current terminologies and classifications, integrate more smoothly with …
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Abstracts in Urgent Care – July 2018

CDC Attributes 200+ Cases of Coagulopathy to Synthetic Cannaboids Key point: “Marijuana alternatives” are widely available—and being blamed for multiple …
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Abstracts in Urgent Care – June 2018

Some Oral Antibiotics Up Risk for Kidney Stones Key point: Oral antibiotics are associated with an increased risk for nephrolithiasis …
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Abstracts in Urgent Care – May 2018

Factors Influencing Provider Efficiency—or Inefficiency—in the ED Key point: Emergency department study on provider efficiency has relevance to urgent care …
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Abstracts in Urgent Care – April 2018

ACP Eases Up on A1c Ceiling for Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Key point: The American College of Physicians suggests …
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LETTER FROM THE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Urgent Care and Antibiotics: Advancing Care and Stewardship

Antimicrobial stewardship is defined as a coordinated program that promotes the appropriate use of antimicrobials (including antibiotics), improves patient outcomes, …
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Anger Management: Hostile Encounters in Urgent Care

Eliminating disruption, distraction, and dissatisfaction is paramount to delivering efficient and high-quality care these days. More than ever, urgent cares …
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Slow Medicine: ‘Unprescribing’ America

#TimesUp; #NeverAgain; #Privacy; #OpioidCrisis; #BlackLivesMatter…. The last year has been a dramatic one for turning points in long-festering social issues …
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Chasing Flu: Predictably Unpredictable

I have managed urgent cares for nearly 20 years and can officially say that predicting flu is for fools! Perhaps …
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The Change Gang: Adopting a Disruptive Culture

We’ve all heard it: Why do we have to change? This is the way we’ve always done things! Change is …
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