Journal of Urgent Care Medicine

Drones Deliver Medication To Cleveland Clinic Patients

Cleveland Clinic has launched a medication home-delivery program that brings prescriptions to patients by drone, according to an announcement . The program currently serves patients within a 5-mile radius of the system’s main administrative campus, which functions as the drone operations hub, and the first patient deliveries were completed last week. What’s significant is that the health system plans to expand the service to additional locations and eventually add more items for drone transport, which …

HCA Adds To Its Texas Urgent Care Portfolio

Methodist Healthcare this week announced its acquisition of 18 Texas MedClinic urgent care centers, increasing its San Antonio urgent care network to 35 CareNow locations. Texas MedClinic was founded in 1982 and represented one of the state’s oldest and most recognizable independent urgent care brands. It was acquired in 2022 by Community Care Partners. Yet, the larger story is that Methodist’s parent company, HCA Healthcare, has acquired the entire Texas MedClinic portfolio of 40 urgent …

NP Workforce Growing Quickly, While Physicians Remain Steady

A new analysis in Health Affairs estimates that the U.S. clinician workforce will continue to shift through 2030 with nurse practitioners (NPs) representing the fastest-growing segment. The number of full-time physicians is expected to increase by only about 1% annually, compared with 5.6% growth for physician assistants/associates (PAs) and 11% growth for NPs. By 2030, the combined number of NPs and PAs is projected to grow to 912,265 workers—almost the size of the physician workforce …

CUCM, UCCOP Shape Measures For Urgent Care Clinician Productivity

The Urgent Care Association recently brought together members of its Clinical Advisory Group, Strategic Advisory Group, and Delegates Council in Washington, D.C., for the annual thought leader meeting known as The Assembly. During the event, the College of Urgent Care Medicine (CUCM) and the Urgent Care College of Physicians (UCCOP) crafted a new position statement on clinician productivity. The leaders took a practical approach that uses a balanced, multidimensional framework, which incorporates patient volume, clinical …

Majority of Symptomatic Respiratory Infections Managed At Home

Respiratory viruses can impact infants more severely than older children, and symptoms run the gamut, according to a new study in Pediatrics. Researchers at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center followed 1,223 healthy children from infancy through age 5 from November 2019 to August 2025 and analyzed 15,898 laboratory-confirmed, single-pathogen respiratory infections to characterize symptom patterns and clinical outcomes. Rhinorrhea, cough, malaise, and fatigue were the most common symptoms. The authors also found that compared with …

Urgent Care Absorbs GI Surge In Cyclospora Outbreak

Urgent care centers have absorbed a national surge in gastrointestinal (GI) visits this summer, driven by a multistate cyclosporiasis outbreak. Urgent Care Consultants’ analysis of 3.9 million private urgent care visits across roughly 3,000 centers using the Experity EMR found GI complaints rose from 22.2 to 34.9 per 1,000 visits between July 2025 and July 2026—an increase of 57%. In the peak week of July 13, 1 in 24 patients presented with acute GI illness, …

New Hampshire Boasts Best Access, Most Urgent Cares

A new analysis concludes that New Hampshire has the best healthcare system in the nation. The annual report produced by Wallet Hub evaluates states based on cost, access, and outcomes using 44 key indicators—including the number of urgent-care centers per capita that are certified by the Urgent Care Association. According to the report, New Hampshire has the most urgent care centers as well as the lowest average monthly health insurance premium ($469) and the second-lowest …

NPs In Texas Say Physician Oversight Is Unconstitutional

Two nurse practitioners (NPs) in Texas and the state’s NP professional association have filed a lawsuit to challenge Texas laws that require NPs to maintain “delegation agreements” with physicians who must oversee their clinical work. According to the complaint, the key plaintiff, who owns her own practice, is paying $96,000 per year for physician oversight services, which the physician can terminate at any time for any reason without state review. The suit argues that the …

Measles Outbreak On Pace To Surpass Last Year’s High Case Counts

In recent days, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed 2,318 measles cases were reported in the United States for the year so far—outpacing the 2,289 confirmed measles cases for all of 2025. And just like last year, 93% of cases are among people who were unvaccinated or had unknown vaccine status, and 20% of cases are among children under the age of 5 years. So far, 151 measles cases have resulted in …

New Acetaminophen-Naproxen Drug Combines 2 OTC Pain Relievers

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the combination of acetaminophen 325 mg and naproxen sodium 110 mg tablets as the first fixed-dose, over-the-counter (OTC) product to pair these 2 pain relief ingredients. The label recommends 1 dose every 12 hours for adults and children aged 12 years and older. It is indicated for temporary relief of common complaints such as headache, muscular aches, and back pain. And like other naproxen products, it should …

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