Practice Management
The 2017–2018 influenza season doesn’t just seem long, thanks to the high volume of cases—and deaths—this year; it’s actually going to last longer than usual, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In fact, the CDC says flu season hasn’t even peaked yet; flu activity continues to be widespread in every state except Hawaii and has remained unchanged for 3 weeks—and indicator that the natural wane is still ahead of us. Nearly 12,000 …
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Fake news has been lamented, scorned, or poked fun at for various reasons and from various political perspectives for the past year, but right now a fake news story circulating on social media could put lives in danger. First appearing on Facebook, the “article” falsely claims that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention acknowledged that influenza vaccine has been responsible for many deaths attributed to flu this year. The myth-busting website Snopes debunked the …
Read MoreOn paper, flu season starts next month, meaning it’s an ideal time to start reminding patients they’ll need flu shots (and that you’ll be happy to provide one). While the majority of children tend to get their shots toward the end of the season according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the distribution has been more evenly distributed for adults over the past few flu seasons, as seen in Figure 1, below. The …
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While the country is locked in its annual battle against influenza, a second “bug” is creeping up and taking its toll on schools and workplaces, as well. Like the flu, norovirus picks up steam in the winter months and is especially hard—sometimes deadly—on seniors and young children. Now the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention predicts February will be the peak month for infection, which is characterized by intense gastrological symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, …
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Hospitalizations for influenza are up 66% over the same period last year in Oregon, according to the Oregon Health Authority. They’re not just coming in through the emergency room, either; one clinician says his hospital’s urgent care and family practices departments, in addition to the ED, are all packed with flu patients. The spike in cases has put pressure on all practice settings, prompting the Health Authority to step up its efforts to promote flu …
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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s warnings that the 2015–2016 might end up being late, and not just light, are coming to fruition from coast to coast—with deadly consequences for some. New data highlight the need for urgent care providers to continue pushing flu shots and to be prepared for more patients with flu-like symptoms. Current flu activity has been called “widespread” in 37 states, with physician visits for flu-like symptoms continuing to rise; …
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Digging into the communal nacho platter at a Super Bowl party could give celebrants a bad case of eater’s remorse—in the form of influenza, especially among the hometown fans of the Carolina Panthers and Denver Broncos. It’s no joke: A new study published in the American Journal of Health Economics reports that the death rate attributed to the flu was significantly higher in regions that Super Bowl teams came from between 1974 and 2009. Researchers …
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As reports of deaths due to seasonal flu start to trickle in—eg, Iowa and California just announced their first flu-related fatalities of the season—patients on the fence about getting vaccinated may be moved to head to the urgent care center for a shot. Not coincidentally, some clinics are already expanding their hours to meet what is expected to be increased demand. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention views the flu “season” as lasting from …
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Alan A. Ayers, MBA, MAcc, is Practice Management Editor for JUCM, serves on the Board Directors of the Urgent Care Association of America, and is Vice-President of Strategic Initiatives for Experity. Urgent Message: Flu shots decrease health-care expenses, workplace absenteeism, and lost productivity, so why do most insurers not cover their cost when patients get the shots at urgent care centers? It is time for this practice to change. According to the U.S. Centers for …
Read MoreIn each issue on this page, we report on research from or relevant to the emerging urgent care marketplace. This month, we offer a first look at data from the 2010 Urgent Care Benchmarking Survey Results. The data are based on the responses of 209 U.S. urgent care centers, 78.8% of which were UCA members. The survey was limited to “full-fledged urgent care centers,” the qualifications of which included accepting walk-ins during all hours of …
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