Practice Management
If not technically a pandemic, cabin fever is definitely running rampant across the U.S. Especially now that the weather is warmer, social distancing restrictions are relaxing a bit, and school years are ending, people are aching to get outside. Ticks await, ready to feast—and you need to be ready to assess for various associated diseases and provide care as needed. One challenge is that patients may complain of symptoms but not mention that they’ve been …
Read More
The World Health Organization made headlines for stating that transmission of coronavirus by infected, asymptomatic people “very rare”—only to clarify hours later that asymptomatic carriers do contribute to spread of the virus. The WHO also acknowledged that more study is needed to understand what role asymptomatic patients play in infecting others. Complicating the issue is a shortfall in health literacy; according to the WHO, many patients mistake the word asymptomatic to mean having only mild symptoms, …
Read More
If testing activities in China are any indication—and can be believed—then widespread screening will be essential to really opening up businesses and culture in the U.S. Officials in Wuhan, where the pandemic really started to take off, say they’ve tested nearly 7 million people, turning up just 206 who were found to have asymptomatic COVID-19; clearly, that’s below the threshold of cases that would prohibit easing social distancing restrictions. This could be a prime opportunity …
Read More
Now that many parts of the country are allowing certain businesses to open their doors—albeit with some restrictions, such as outdoor seating in a restaurant—the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is identifying “areas of concern” for new spread of COVID-19. They include states that may have eased restrictions too much and too soon (Florida and Alabama being two named by the CDC, though specific counties in Iowa, Nebraska, Louisiana, and Virginia were also called …
Read More
The Paycheck Protection Program was passed to reduce pressure on small businesses, including many urgent care centers, that would have a hard time meeting payroll during the COVID-19 crisis by paving the way for them to get loans. While execution of the plan has had its bumps, both houses of Congress have now approved an amendment, HR 7010, that could help urgent care centers maintain existing staffing levels (or close to them) and even save …
Read More
With social distancing in effect across the U.S., regular cannabis users may find it difficult to maintain their typical rate of usage, possibly leading to withdrawal from the drug. A newly published article in JAMA Network Open reveals that 47% of 23,518 patients who were part of a meta-analysis of cannabis users experienced withdrawal when they stopped or reduced their usage. Concurrent cannabis, tobacco, and other substance use disorders were associated with a higher prevalence …
Read More
While local governments and law enforcement bodies struggle to maintain order during unrest sparked by the death of George Floyd during an encounter with police in Minneapolis, public health officials are expressing a secondary concern: that the volume of citizens and police officers interacting in such close proximity could beget a second wave of COVID-19 infections. While photos and television coverage show most protestors and police officers wearing masks, the fact remains that doing so …
Read More
A new study published in the journal Diabetologia indicates that poor glycemic control, while clearly a threat to anyone with diabetes, is not as foreboding as excessive body mass index when it comes to predicting poor prognosis in patients with COVID-19 and diabetes. The authors called BMI “an independent prognostic factor for disease severity in this population, whereas chronic [glycemic] control and routine therapies, such as RAAS blockers and DPP-4 inhibitors, did not impact the immediate …
Read More
A study published in JAMA Internal Medicine shares news of a risk assessment tool that is purported to predict which patients with COVID-19 will become severely ill. Derived from research at The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University in Guangzhou, China, and reflecting data from 1,590 patients with COVID-19 who were hospitalized between February 20 and March 17, 2020, the tool uses 10 variables readily available at the time of hospital admission—many of which …
Read More
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has reversed an earlier guidance that suggested there was some discretion in enforcing reporting requirements when it comes to COVID-19 complaints outside of healthcare or emergency response workplaces. As of May 26, OSHA says it classifies COVID-19 as “a potentially recordable illness” and that “employers should be taking action to determine whether employee COVID-19 illnesses are work-related and thus recordable.” As more workplaces move closer to starting on-site work, …
Read More