Practice Management
A new study demonstrates that the benefits of clinician empathy toward patients can be even more effective than some therapies in treating chronic low-back pain, as published in JAMA Network Open. Low-back pain affects up to 85% of the US population, and researchers found that treatment from physicians whom the patients considered “very empathic” was associated with better outcomes at the end of 1 year than treatment from “slightly empathic” physicians. Each of the 1,470 …
Read More
A recent study of emergency medicine healthcare workers at a large urban medical center investigated the link between sleep disturbance, burnout, and emotional exhaustion. Published in JAMA Network Open, the study found that poor sleep quality increased the likelihood of elevated emotional exhaustion by 2.45 times, and insomnia symptoms were also associated with a more than doubling of emotional exhaustion. The research was conducted between November 2020 and January 2022, involving 126 workers who completed …
Read More
In today’s political climate, tensions can run high even among friends and families. As such, employers are wise to revisit their conduct policies and make a point of having employees refresh their knowledge of workplace and social media expectations. Of course, it’s not possible or legal for an employer to fully control what their employees say on social media because the platform has free speech protections. That means employers cannot legally prevent employees from discussing …
Read More
An analysis in STAT News found a recently developed disconnect between interest in the field of emergency medicine and the number of available residency spots. The number of applications has exceeded the number of positions historically with more than enough applicants throwing their hats in the ring from 2008 to 2022. However in recent months, the trend has reversed. Now, as the analysis shows, the number of applications has dropped well below the number of …
Read More
One hour of free CME will be offered in the forthcoming Bouncebacks! Book Club virtual discussions. The book series Bouncebacks!—created by The Journal of Urgent Care Medicine’s Senior Clinical Editor Michael Weinstock, MD, and colleagues—takes a fresh approach to the practice of medicine by focusing on “bounce-back” visits with a collection of case reports. The Bouncebacks! series presents the actual documentation of an emergency encounter, analyzes it from a risk-management and patient-safety perspective, then reveals …
Read More
A new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) describes the well-being and working conditions for health workers using self-reported, cross-sectional data. From 2018 to 2022, health workers reported an increase in days where they felt their mental health was poor (from 3.3 days to 4.5 days). Meanwhile, the percentage who reported feeling burnout “very often” increased from 11.6% to 19.0%. Overall, 57.0% reported anxiety symptoms in 2022, and 44.2% reported being …
Read More
Once again, Patient First is offering community members free X-rays of their trick-or-treat Halloween candy each evening until November 3. The goal is for kids to become familiar with the urgent care setting and the providers and staff, which may ease some anxiety should they return for another reason. Not to mention, looking at the caramel center of a candy bar is much more fun than looking at a broken bone. Possible recruitment for the …
Read More
More than 111,000 people died as a result of a drug overdose between April 2022 and April 2023, according to the most recent federal data. Compared to January 2015 data—when deaths reached 47,523—today’s overdose numbers have increased a staggering 133%. Medical Economics recently created a checklist of red flags to watch for in patients who might be seeking prescription pain medications as a way to ward off cravings or withdrawal associated with substance use disorders. …
Read More
Individuals are obtaining antibiotics that were not prescribed for them from a variety of sources—including other countries, the internet, friends, relatives, or from previous prescriptions—and using them to self-treat their cold and flu symptoms, according to a press release from the Infectious Diseases Society of America. Convenience, past treatment experiences, and the hassle of navigating the healthcare system are among the reasons patients said they take the “nonprescription” antibiotics. The study was presented by the Baylor College …
Read More
Industry advocates are encouraging healthcare leaders to take a hard look at their licensing, credentialing, and privileging applications and rewrite any questions that could perpetuate stigma around behavioral health issues. The Dr. Lorna Breen Heroes’ Foundation, a nonprofit that aims to reduce burnout and safeguard health professionals’ wellbeing, recently recognized 59 urgent care organizations and 75 hospitals among its WellBeing First Champions—organizations that have made application updates consistent with the foundation’s recommendations. What matters most: …
Read More