Journal of Urgent Care Medicine

A Comparison of Chief Complaints, Specific Diagnoses, and Demographics of Pediatric Urgent Care Visits Before and During the COVID- 19 Pandemic: A Retrospective Study

Zaharoula A. Viennas, MD; Julie Martin, MAEd, MMS, PA-C; Benjamin Klick, MD; Tammy Speerhas, DNP, FNP-C, RN, CEN, CME; Turaj Vazifedan, DHSc; Danielle Millspaugh, DNP, FNP-C; Jennifer Ferris, MD; Margret Bedle, MD; Lauren Paluch, DMSc, PA-C; and Theresa Guins, MD Urgent message: Research has shown distinct differences in patterns of children presenting to emergency rooms during COVID-related lockdowns. However, data specific to urgent care have been lacking previously. Citation: Viennas ZA, Martin J, Klick B, …

MIS-C May Be More of a Threat than We Originally Thought—Especially for Children of Color

At the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic, it appeared that children were at much lower risk than adults for poor outcomes, or even for becoming infected at all. As time went on it became clear that a COVID-related complication, multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C), was a threat to children’s lives—but, again, it appeared to be a rare occurrence and so did not garner the attention that it now appears it should have. A study …

Routine Vaccinations Skipped During the Pandemic May Be Coming Back to Haunt Us Now

Well-care visits to healthcare providers essentially ceased during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. That included routine vaccination for children. It wasn’t much of a threat for a while, as kids had little face-to-face interaction with anyone outside their family, thereby lowering risk of any infectious disease. Now, however, healthcare officials are concerned that a measles outbreak in the Midwest United States could be the harbinger of a national or even global emergency. As reported …

With COVID and Flu Still a Concern, Pediatric RSV Cases Are at a Crisis Point

Respiratory syncytial virus is running rampant from coast to coast, to the point that RSV hospitalizations outnumber COVID-19 in children by a 10 to one ratio in at least one hospital, according to an article published by the New York Post. It goes on to note that the virus is causing a “capacity disaster” in the words of the head of the pediatric department at Massachusetts General for Children. The pediatric ICU there is at …

With COVID-19 Expected to Climb This Winter, Could a Resurgence in MIS-C Be Far Behind?

With COVID-19 Expected to Climb This Winter, Could a Resurgence in MIS-C Be Far Behind? As JUCM News has reported, cases of COVID-19 are expected to climb as we move into the winter months. While some signs point to a “season” that will be less severe than the past couple of years, others paint a less optimistic picture. Either way, it is essential to keep in mind that while otherwise healthy children have been less …

As Concerns Over Acute Flaccid Myelitis Linger, UCA Invites You to Revisit Essential Information

As JUCM News reported recently, an increase in new cases of severe respiratory illness in children prompted the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Health Advisory Network to issue a bulletin advising U.S. clinicians to be vigilant for signs of acute flaccid myelitis (AFM) in younger patients. The September announcement noted an increase in illness attributed to both rhinovirus and Enterovirus in children across the country. Some of the Enterovirus patients tested positive for EV-D68, …

Kids Can Have Long COVID, too—and It May Not Look the Same as It Does in Adults

Long COVID has been much discussed here and elsewhere—even more so since new acute cases of COVID-19 have slowed—so it’s likely you have a general sense of what to look for in prospective cases. That’s unless the patient is a child, anyway; new information just published in JAMA Pediatrics reveals that, while uncommon in kids, postacute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC) manifests differently in younger patients than it does in adults. The cohort study, reflecting …

Are Children Safe from Sexual Predators in Your Urgent Care Center?

Public service initiatives have done a thorough job of introducing children and the general public to “stranger danger.” However, there is no corresponding widespread campaign for adults who are legally bound to report viable concerns that a child could be a victim of sexual abuse (ie, mandatory reporters), including educators, clergy, healthcare professionals, and others. Rather, it’s up to those various disciplines to ensure their cohorts understand how to recognize red flags—including warning signs that …

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 …

Angry Citizens Are Harassing Hospitals Over Care for Transgender Youth. Can Urgent Care Help?

A newly published report from Becker’s Hospital Review reveals that at least one healthcare facility in Washington, DC has been the recipient of angry phone calls and social media posts due to either misinformation or disinformation concerning the care it provides to transgender young people. The controversy is based on a recording posted to the Twitter account of an activist group, in which two Children’s National hospital telephone operators discuss the notion that the staff …