Ashley Blachford, Author at Journal of Urgent Care Medicine

Nirsevimab May Help Reduce Antibiotic Prescribing for Newborns and Infants

Researchers examining electronic health record data found nirsevimab administration was associated with reduced antibiotic prescribing among infants during their first respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) season, as published in Clinical Infectious Diseases. Among 15,341 eligible infants from 32 pediatric practices in the study, 7,413 (48.3%) received nirsevimab. At 6 months, nirsevimab was associated with a 14.4% reduction in antibiotic prescribing for outpatient acute respiratory tract infections and a 40.3% reduction for outpatient bronchiolitis. Antibiotic prescribing associated …

Pathogen Findings Don’t Always Signal UTIs

Researchers found that women with urinary tract infection (UTI), those with noninfectious lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS), and control subjects exhibited similar uropathogen levels when evaluated with quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) testing, as published in Clinical Infectious Diseases. They analyzed urine from 502 women: 104 with recurrent UTI and acute symptoms; 354 with noninfectious LUTS; and 44 asymptomatic controls. The qPCR tests detected bacterial DNA in nearly all participants, including E coli in 97.3%, …

Many Physicians Lack Reliable Resources For Language Interpretation

For patients with limited English proficiency (LEP), a healthcare visit can be somewhat frustrating for them and for their clinician. That’s why several federal laws require certain healthcare entities to offer interpreter services. A survey of 230 primary care physicians recently published in JAMA Network Open revealed that only 50.4% of respondents regularly used at least 1 type of professional medical interpreter, while 53.0% regularly relied on ad hoc interpreters, such as family members or …

Urgent Care Encounters Provide Clues For Flu Vaccine Effectiveness

The 2024–2025 influenza season was characterized as having high severity, and in research published in Open Forum Infectious Diseases, researchers found flu shots provided protection not just against hospitalization but also against emergency department (ED) and urgent care (UC) visits during that time. They evaluated influenza vaccine effectiveness using data from 7 healthcare systems in 8 states across 102,854 ED/urgent care visits among children and 233,411 visits among adults. Overall, vaccination was 54% effective against …

CUCM Offers Input on Ebola Preparedness to Federal Agency

The College of Urgent Care Medicine’s (CUCM) Clinical Response Committee recently collaborated with representatives from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to discuss Ebola preparedness. Even though no cases of Ebola have been confirmed in the United States, CDC is responsible for advanced public health preparation and mitigation strategies should any Ebola cases be identified. According to CUCM, the discussion between the federal agency and College’s committee is significant because it underscores the …

What Could Possibly Replace CPT Codes? CMS Is Asking.

The nonprofit PatientRightsAdvocate.org (PRA) has filed a lawsuit against the American Medical Association (AMA) seeking to make Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) codes available to the public and health organizations free of charge, according to an announcement. Federal law requires healthcare entities to use CPT for Medicare claims, and most payer policies—including among state Medicaid programs—use CPT codes for billing as well. AMA has held the copyright for CPT since 1966, and it charges organizations for …

CUCM Begins Work on First Urgent Care NP Certification

The American Academy of Nurse Practitioners Certification Board has confirmed a petition to begin development of the first Urgent Care Nurse Practitioner Certification, through a process led by the College of Urgent Care Medicine (CUCM). In September, a panel of selected urgent care nurse practitioner clinicians and leaders will meet in Las Vegas to begin the foundational work of identifying the knowledge domains, establishing practice standards, and outlining the blueprint for what will ultimately become …

Flu Shots Hold Their Own For The Upcoming Season

Medical societies are doubling down on recommendations for flu vaccines for the upcoming 2026–2027 season, which starts around the beginning of October. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), for example, is reinforcing its recommendations for flu vaccines for all children ages 6 months and older without contraindications, as published this week in Pediatrics. AAP specifically notes in a separate press release that the vaccines have been thoroughly studied and are safe for children. For the …

Rise In Vibrio Vulnificus Deaths Prompts Public Health Warnings

State health departments are reporting an increase in severe Vibrio vulnificus infections along the Gulf Coast in recent weeks with the highest concern currently centered around Louisiana, which has recorded 9 confirmed cases for the year so far. All 9 patients were hospitalized, and 5 have died. Louisiana normally averages about 7 cases and 1 death per year, so the case counts and deaths have prompted public warnings for consumers to stay out of the …

Urgent Care Question? Just Ask JUCM.

JUCM has released Ask JUCM, our new online tool powered by artificial intelligence, which allows visitors to search our journal’s complete educational library by asking a question in the “Ask JUCM” query box. Users get curated answers from JUCM—without spending time searching through individual articles. Ask a question in plain language and receive a concise, evidence-based answer, grounded in the journal’s trusted content. Ask JUCM provides another way to explore information that advances both clinical …

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