Practice Management
What has been mostly anecdotal over the past several years has now been confirmed by researchers from Harvard Medical School, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center: Fewer patients than ever are going to traditional primary care practices, meaning their patronage is up for grabs. Between 2002 and 2015, there was a 2% drop in the number of patients who have an established primary care provider. While younger patients, people of color, …
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A little boy bangs his toe on the coffee table while chasing his cat around the house. He’s screaming bloody murder and his mom is convinced he’s broken a bone. It’s a scenario tailor-made for urgent care, so she drives immediately to your clinic—only to find the only parking spot is across the street, in the municipal lot. Be assured she’s not parking there; nor is she going to circle until something opens up. She’s …
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The patient is a 90-year-old woman who presents to urgent care with a 2-week history of intermittent lightheadedness. She denies syncope, chest pain, shortness of breath, diaphoresis, or focal neurological symptoms. Upon exam, you find: General: Alert and oriented X 3, sitting fully dressed in a chair Lungs: CTAB Cardiovascular: RRR without murmur, rub, or gallop Abdomen: Soft and NT, no pulsatile mass Ext: No peripheral edema, pulses are 2+ and equal in all extremities …
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Insurers, health systems, and state governments have cobbled together regulations on various aspects of prescriptions for opiates. The federal government is working on legislation aimed at curbing the opioid crisis, too. Walmart and Sam’s Club’s pharmacies aren’t waiting for new regulations to mandate the limits of opioid prescriptions, however. Instead, the parent company is imposing a limit of 7-days’ supply for patients who are prescribed opiates for acute, short-term pain. Those restrictions will start within …
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Western Connecticut Medical Group (WCMG) and American Family Care (AFC) have entered into a collaborative partnership to provide coordinated patient care—or, put more plainly, to increase the odds of retaining patients who visit AFC’s urgent care locations within a defined follow-up path. The two companies have structured their arrangement so AFC patients who need follow-up will have improved access to primary and specialty care practices within WCMG. Traffic will be two-way, too; WCMG patients who need …
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It would seem to be self-evident that your urgent care center needs to collect on all fees for care provided in order to stay in business. Whether by sloppy bookkeeping, honest mistakes, or well-intentioned attempts at “charity,” however, millions of dollars are going unclaimed for services rendered across the country, according to an editorial that appeared in the Chicago Tribune recently. The opinion piece, penned by the paper’s Editorial Board, goes so far as to …
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When is a free physical not free, but still a bargain? When the true cost is a donation—in any amount the patient chooses—to a charity for children. That’s the deal New England Urgent Care is offering at its West Hartford, CT location for the next couple of weeks. They’ll conduct physicals for children who need one before they can go to summer camp, waiving their normal fee in exchange for a donation of any amount …
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Despite vast improvements in the management of patient data thanks to the advent of electronic health records, too many people still have a hard time getting access to their own healthcare information, according to the Government Accountability Office. Under the requirements of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), this presents a problem for consumers and providers alike. HIPAA mandates that patients be able to receive a copy of their own medical …
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We’ve shared research showing that certain over-the-counter pain medications can be as effective as opioid medications for acute pain before. Now a study conducted by the School of Dental Medicine at Case Western Reserve University School offers new data indicating the same is true for dental pain. Researchers found that ibuprofen and other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, either alone or in combination with acetaminophen, are actually more effective than opioids for many patients when it comes …
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Urgent message: Prolonged sitting has been called the “new smoking” causing a host of diseases, making it a concern for both employees and employers. Alan A. Ayers, MBA, MAcc is Chief Executive Officer of Velocity Urgent Care and is Practice Management Editor of The Journal of Urgent Care Medicine. Think about your typical workday for a moment: What does it look like? You sit at your desk for a significant period of time, of course. …
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