Ashley Blachford, Author at Journal of Urgent Care Medicine

More Animal Encounters Raise Concern For Rabies Exposure

Several states are experiencing a combination of unique human-and-wildlife encounters and highly publicized events involving potential rabies exposures from those animals. In Michigan, for example, statewide reporting confirmed positive tests for 47 rabid bats and 1 rabid skunk through September 3—mostly related to animals that were found in family homes. Recently, an urgent care in Traverse City, Michigan, has started offering post-exposure rabies treatment to improve access to care and help patients avoid the emergency …

Nitrous Oxide Inhalation Is An Urgent Care Visit Waiting To Happen

Inhalants and their health effects deserve more study, according to a new analysis. Leveraging federal health data, researchers found that among 33,771 U.S. adolescents aged 12–17 years, 2.2% of them reported using inhalants such as aerosol sprays and nitrous oxide in the past year, as published in Preventive Medicine. The inhalants are often used recreationally for their euphoria effects, leading to accidental poisonings and overdoses. With these new estimates of inhalant use, the authors conclude …

Respiratory Viruses May Hang Around With Persistent Symptoms

Some respiratory viral infections can be followed by weeks of persistent respiratory, cardiovascular, and functional symptoms, according to an analysis published in Respirology. The review, which included 13 studies involving 631,863 participants, found that influenza had the strongest evidence for long-term effects. In one cohort, 23% of adults reported persistent symptoms 12 weeks after influenza, while a separate claims study found 10% of patients remained symptomatic at 6 months. Postacute complications varied by virus, and …

Hospitals Must Retool In Light Of ED-Diversion Bans

Massachusetts implemented a sweeping healthcare policy in 2009, becoming the first state to ban routine ambulance diversion—meaning that hospitals could no longer divert patients away from busy emergency departments (EDs) and send them to another hospital simply due to overcrowding. Beginning this month, Indiana has adopted a similar measure to eliminate hospital ED diversion. In practice it means hospitals have to be operationally capable of addressing throughput, staffing, and overall capacity no matter what comes …

Food Allergy Prevalence Shows Steady Increase, Care Gaps Remain

Food allergy affects more than 33 million people in the United States, including an estimated 10.8% of adults and 7.6% of children, according to a new national indicator report from Food Allergy Research & Education nonprofit organization. Nearly half of adults with food allergy developed at least 1 allergy during adulthood, which means clinicians might need to consider new-onset food allergy in differential diagnoses for adult patients. Shellfish and wheat are the most commonly reported …

Decades Of Respiratory Disease Prevention Is Paying Off

Long-term U.S. mortality data indicate an overall decrease in deaths from influenza and pneumonia. A new analysis of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data published in Medicine studied adults aged 25 years and older and found the age-adjusted mortality rate fell from 35.93 per 100,000 residents in 1999 to 16.46 per 100,000 residents in 2023, an average annual decline of 3.18%. Total deaths also decreased from 63,006 to 44,625 in the time frame. …

COVID Positivity Rates Increase Just As Seasonal Vaccines Receive Approval

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved 4 updated 2026–2027 COVID-19 vaccines for the upcoming respiratory virus season. All of the new formulations have been updated for XFG variant, according to FDA, and all follow the somewhat tighter age and risk restrictions that were introduced in 2025. Prior to the 2024–2025 season, vaccination was broadly recommended for everyone aged 6 months and older. Now, a healthy 50-year-old with no underlying risk factor, for example, …

NP, PA Roles Can Be Tough To Fill, Especially For Urgent Care

Advanced practice providers (APPs) have become increasingly important in healthcare’s overall workforce strategy, especially in urgent care. A small national survey of 327 healthcare facility leaders by CHG Healthcare found that 92% of respondents considered APPs very or extremely important to their workforce strategy, and 96% expected to maintain or increase APP utilization in 2026. The overall findings suggest that APPs are being used not simply to fill vacancies but as part of longer-term strategies …

Pregnant Women Don’t Need To Stop Inhaled Corticosteroids: Study

Clinicians can be reassured that evidence supports recommendations (eg, Global Initiative for Asthma) that pregnant women with asthma can continue use of inhaled corticosteroids (ICSs) during pregnancy, as published in JAMA Network Open. In the study of 6,105 pregnant women in South Korea, 2,108 women (34.5%) continued ICS during the first trimester and were compared to 3,997 women (65.5%) who discontinued ICS during the first trimester. Researchers found ICS continuation was not associated with significantly …

New Migraine Guide Highlights Prevention Opportunities

The updated American Academy of Neurology (AAN)/American Headache Society (AHS) guidelines for pharmacologic prevention of migraine in adults were published this week in Neurology and endorsed by the American Academy of Family Physicians. The guidelines suggest a migraine visit should also be considered as an opportunity for clinicians to identify patients who need preventive therapy beyond just treatment for the acute event. According to the update, preventive treatment should be offered to adults with 4 …

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