Journal of Urgent Care Medicine

Patients Less Likely to Follow Up After Telehealth Visits

Your follow-up recommendation for a patient seen with a telehealth visit is often a diagnostic test or specialty referral. Completion of those follow-up recommendations—“diagnostic loop closure”—seems to be lacking, according to a study in JAMA Network Open. The study involved 4,133 diagnostic tests and referrals (colonoscopies, cardiac stress tests, and dermatology referrals) from March 2020 through December 2021 at 2 primary care sites. Results showed that 58% of in-person visit orders were completed within the …

Statins Reduce Risks for Women Using Hormone Therapy

When physicians prescribe hormone therapy (HT) for perimenopausal women, many warn their patients of the increased risk for venous thromboembolism (VTE). However, knowing that a large number of patients also take statin medications to prevent cardiovascular issues, it would make sense to study the effect statins may have on the risk of VTE for women using HT. A new study in JAMA Network Open did that very thing and found the risk of VTE was …

Arkansas UC Centers Anticipate Ambulance Arrivals

In Arkansas, a new rule will begin January 1, 2024, allowing ambulance services to triage, treat, and transport patients to alternative destinations, including urgent care centers, physician offices, and behavioral health facilities. However, the ambulance service will be on-task to first coordinate the patient’s care with a physician or a behavioral health specialist via telemedicine. Insurers will also be required to cover 911-initiated ambulance dispatch resulting in telemedicine triage, transportation to the alternative destination, and/or treatment …

Positive Perception of Urgent Care Rises

A new poll from Gallup found that Americans have a more favorable perception of the care and attention they receive at urgent care compared to many other provider types. Among the list of 9 healthcare players in the 2023 Health and Healthcare survey, urgent care ranks just above the middle at number 4. Here’s how respondents rated urgent care: “Excellent/Good”: 56%; “Only Fair”: 32%; “Poor”: 10%. Nurses receive the best rating from consumers with 82% …

CVS Adds Large In-Store Clinic Space for Carbon Health

In January 2023, pharmacy chain CVS made an investment of $100 million in Carbon Health—a primary care and urgent care operation—presumably to augment the limited scope of CVS’ existing MinuteClinic business. Now, CVS retail stores in the Northeast are starting to show signs of Carbon Health’s entrance. According to Salem News (Massachusetts), locations in the cities of Beverly and Swampscott are planning to open new in-store clinics that will replace and significantly expand on the …

Patients More Likely to Stick With Semaglutide Treatment

Patients taking the GLP-1 weight loss drug semaglutide were 3 times more likely to maintain adherence to their medication regimens a year later when compared to other drug options, according to a Cleveland Clinic study. As described in Obesity, researchers examined health records of 1,911 adults in two states and found 40% of semaglutide patients were still filling their prescriptions 12 months after the initiation of treatment. Patients using other anti-obesity drugs, such as orlistat, liraglutide, …

Free Federal Program Competes With UC During Flu Season

The Home Test to Treat program, a virtual community-health initiative created by the federal government, has scaled up to offer free nationwide testing and treatment services for COVID-19 and influenza. Offering at-home rapid tests, telehealth sessions, and home-delivered medication, the program is a collaboration among three federal agencies. Uninsured adults or those enrolled in Medicare, Medicaid, Veterans Affairs, or the Indian Health Services can now enroll to receive free tests. Positive test results allow patients …

Community Response Helps Save Emergency Medicine Program

Christus Spohn Shoreline Hospital’s emergency medicine residency program was recently saved from a planned closure that was slated for 2026, according to MedPage Today. Response from residents, faculty, and local politicians eventually turned the tide on the decision to close the program. After administrators initially announced the program’s termination in October, widespread community support encouraged the county’s commissioners to meet and look for solutions. On December 1, officials approved a 6-year deal, allocating annual funding …

Flu Season Instigates Longer ED Wait Times

In a cohort study of more than 2.7 million emergency department (ED) visits published in JAMA Network Open, researchers found long wait times and lengths of stay were common at children’s hospitals during the 2022 surge of viral respiratory illnesses. They studied visits across 25 EDs from September 1 to December 31, 2022, including 301,688 pediatric visits for viral and respiratory illness, such as COVID-19 and respiratory syncytial virus. The experience during this time period …

Florida Hospitals May Need UC Partnerships—Possibly To UC’s Detriment

Under the “Live Healthy” initiative proposed by Florida lawmakers in early December, every hospital emergency department (ED) would need to create a plan for handling patients who present with non-emergent conditions and/or for those who do not have access to a primary care physician. The aim of the proposed legislation is to divert non-emergent ED visits to urgent care or primary care, thus saving ED resources and encouraging less costly preventive care. If passed, the rules would …

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