Practice Management
The minute details of payer contracts can affect revenue to such an extent that they can make or break an urgent care center that’s just getting started. The Urgent Care Association will seek to help urgent care operators enter contracts that offer optimal terms during a two-part Advanced Payer Contracting Webinar this Thursday, December 6 and next Tuesday, December 11, from 1 to 2 pm, Central. After taking part in the webinar, attendees should have …
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No responsible urgent care operator would knowingly employ a clinician whose history included behavior that put patients at risk, whether that meant irresponsible prescribing, claims of inappropriate behavior, or just plain incompetence. Unfortunately, just checking that a job candidate’s CV is on point and verifying references isn’t sufficient if someone has something to hide. A new report produced by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, USA Today, and MedPage Today tells the tale of a surgeon who …
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Healthcare providers who took an online CME program specific to seasonal influenza in children, and that took into account flu shot hesitancy in parents, were more likely to vaccinate infants against the flu, according to a study out of Western University in Canada. Authors of the paper, which was presented at IDWeek recently, concluded that the results show a distinct cause-and-effect relationship between providing timely clinical education and clinical action by participants. “Timely” may be …
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The main focus of a new study just released by ECG Management Consultants may be physician compensation, but buried within the data is an interesting fact about the physician job market. Whereas between 64% and 100% of open physician positions took at least 6 months to fill in four out of five categories, depending on the specialty measured, only 20% of open positions went unfilled for that long in urgent care (the fifth category). ECG’s …
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If Walgreens and Humana opt to broaden their working relationship, hospitals may be more at risk for lost revenue than urgent care operators. A new post on the HealthLeaders website conjectures that such a venture “could be part of a new competitive threat to hospital revenue as the two healthcare giants work to guide seniors covered by Medicare to low-cost outpatient retail care settings.” Inclusion of the qualifying word “seniors” is where urgent care can …
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If current data hold true in the years to come, antimicrobial-resistant infection is expected to kill 1 million Americans and cost developed countries $3.5 billion per year by the year 2050. Conversely, according to a new report from the Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD), 75% of deaths could be averted by investing $2 per person per year in measures to stem resistance. That model presumes that the current growth rate of antibiotic resistance …
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Addiction may not be the only risk for patients who take opioid pain medications—even if they follow prescribing directions to the letter. A paper presented at the American Heart Association Scientific Sessions reveals increased risk for atrial fibrillation in patients who take opioids. Accounting for comorbidities, demographics, and mental health conditions, patients who took opioids were found to be 34% more likely to develop AFib than those who did not take opioids. The data are …
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Cases of measles and chickenpox are spreading in North Carolina and South Carolina, respectively, leading public health officials in both states to urge residents to get themselves and their children vaccinated. At least 12 students have been diagnosed with chickenpox at a single private school in Asheville, NC. Buncome County, which includes Asheville, has North Carolina’s highest rate of kindergarteners who have not been immunized because of religious exemptions. Without immunization, chickenpox is highly contagious. …
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Fewer young children are getting vaccination against many diseases than in years past, opening the door for preventable disease outbreaks, according to new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The threat is especially acute in uninsured and Medicaid-insured children. The CDC report, Vaccination Coverage Among Children Aged 19–35 Months—United States, 2018, notes that children under 2 years of age, in particular, are less likely to receive all the recommended vaccinations than in …
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One of Alleghany Health Networks key hospitals saw more patients choose its urgent care centers over its emergency room for the first time ever last year. Saint Vincent Hospital has also seen a steady increase in visits to its primary care offices—again, at the expense of the ED. Saint Vincent President Chris Clark, DO told attendees of the hospital’s annual meeting that’s the outcome of efforts to “do more patient care outside the four walls …
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