Journal of Urgent Care Medicine

Be Alert—Acute Flaccid Myelitis May Be Returning with a Vengeance

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention initiated a Health Alert Network bulletin last week concerning an uptick in severe respiratory illness attributed to both rhinovirus and Enterovirus in children across the country. Some of the Enterovirus patients tested positive for EV-D68, which has been associated with acute flaccid myelitis (AFM), a neurologic complication found to induce polio-like symptoms. Consequently, the CDC “urge(s) healthcare providers to consider EV-D68 as a possible cause of acute, severe …

How Valuable Is Urgent Care? Ask the Small-Town Mayor Aching for One in His Community

MedExpress’s decision to close down its 7-year-old urgent care center in Haverhill, MA last month didn’t sit well with Mayor James Fiorentini. Obviously, no civic-minded public official wants to see a successful business vacate the community, for economic reasons alone. But hizzoner has been very public in decrying the void the departure leaves in the town’s healthcare resources. According to an article published in the local newspaper Eagle Tribune, Fiorentini is “looking to recruit another …

Unnecessary X-Rays—and Related Billing—Land a Physician in Prison

A physician in California has been sentenced to 7 years in prison after being convicted of ordering “excessive and medically unnecessary x-rays to healthy patients” and subsequently billing both Medicare and Medi-Cal as reported in MedPage Today. State law enforcement first caught wind that something in the practice could be amiss in 2016. Upon investigating the cases of 10 reportedly randomly selected patients, they say they found evidence of medically unnecessary x-rays and fraudulent billing. …

Note: Antibiotic Overprescribing Takes Place Beyond the Ear, Nose, and Throat

Typically, on the subject of antibiotic overprescribing, we think of a harried provider being worn down by a patient or parent of a young patient presenting with a sore throat, bad cold, or earache who insists they need an antibiotic even when it’s not indicated. However, a new article published online by the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy reveals that approximately 13% of ambulatory care visits for acute gastroenteritis result in an antibiotic …

That New York Polio Case May Be Just the Tip of the Iceberg

You probably recall reading in JUCM News that a case of paralytic polio occurred in Rockland County, NY recently. It was such an anomaly that the case also garnered widespread attention among national media. As noted in an article just published by JAMA Network it’s likely, based on analysis of the unvaccinated patient’s genomic sequencing, that the virus had “been circulating under the radar for up to a year,” however. Not long after that highly …

Ketamine Is the Latest Drug Being Pushed by Virtual Providers—and Psychiatrists Are Concerned

First, ads for erectile dysfunction products available after a quick virtual “evaluation” flooded drivetime radio and social media platforms. Many took a humorous approach. Then spots started taking a darker turn to pitch the benefits of drugs—again, available for individuals specifically seeking a particular treatment—for mental health issues like anxiety and depression. As noted in a recent article from MedPage Today, the latest of those offers access to ketamine, a medication with proven benefits but …

UCA Is Putting Urgent Care Out There to Support CDC’s Antibiotic Stewardship Efforts

The Urgent Care Association’s Urgent Care Foundation is using its first-ever grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to develop programs that further the cause of antibiotic stewardship. The funds will be put toward updating the UCA/College of Urgent Care Medicine Antibiotic Stewardship toolkit, creating a 4-year industry action plan, and continuing the partnership with the Antibiotic Resistance Action Center at George Washington University. This work is especially timely in the wake of a …

AMA Is Concerned About the Physician Shortage—and Says Urgent Care Is Part of the Solution

A recent post to the American Medical Association’s website acknowledges that the looming physician shortage could be very problematic for patients who already have a hard time managing diabetes, hypertension, and other chronic health concerns with the help of their primary care team. The solution, the piece suggests, is greater use of “team-based care” that would include PCPs, specialists, and nonphysician clinicians (eg, nurses and pharmacists), as well as nonclinicians. The choice of settings in …

The Next Move in Amazon’s Healthcare Path Is to Take a Step Back

JUCM News readers are aware that Amazon has tried many times, in many ways, over many years to chisel out a piece of the U.S. healthcare marketplace. Most recently, we told you that they opted to spend $3.9 billion to buy One Medical—a departure from Amazon’s brand recognition as a giant in the online marketplace given that One Medical has 125 brick-and-mortar locations. Now, according to a report from CNBC, they’ve taken another step away …

‘Crumbling’ and ‘Fragile’: Physicians Have Spoken on the Perceived State of Primary Care

The axiom physician heal thyself might be better applied to the state of primary care medicine, if the results of a survey conducted by the Primary Care Collaborative and the Larry A. Green Center are any indication. Based on responses from 847 physicians in 49 states, it’s not a pretty picture for providers or patients. Asked to assess the state of primary care in general, 46% chose the word “crumbling” while approximately 40% said they …

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