Practice Management
Over the 12-month period ending June 15, 2025, 29% of urgent care patients were children and young adults aged 21 years or younger, while 71% were patients aged 22 years or older, according to an exclusive analysis of 35 million patient visits recorded in the Experity EMR. Further, the chart demonstrates the age breakdown of the population of children and young adults who visited urgent care. This analysis omits visits for employer-paid services and workers …
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Saji Rajasekharan Urgent care is no longer the healthcare industry’s understudy or stopgap solution—it’s become a primary point of access for millions. According to Urgent Care Association, more than 200 million visits are made to urgent care centers annually in the United States, reflecting patients’ growing demand for fast, reliable, and accessible care.[1] Patient expectations mirror those of retail: seamless digital check-ins, price transparency, and instant answers. Meeting these demands isn’t a value-add—it’s a strategic …
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The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) this week approved 3 COVID-19 vaccines for the upcoming flu season. However, key restrictions that differ from years past include: fewer vaccine options for the youngest pediatric population; and generally no eligibility for those ages 5-64 who are healthy and not high-risk. In addition, FDA revoked emergency use authorizations for the vaccines, which had included a lower-dose option for children ages 6 months to 4 years. Announcements were posted …
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Urgent Message: Across a tristate urgent care and convenient care network, systemic steroid use occurred in nearly one-sixth of encounters (15.5%)—72.5% for likely avoidable indications and 66% for acute respiratory infections. The finding highlights the need to establish systemic steroid metrics to drive stewardship efforts. Paul Hansen, MD; Yang Wang, PhD; Muhammad Naseer, MD Abstract Background: The College of Urgent Care Medicine released a position statement advocating for corticosteroid stewardship best practices in 2022, …
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Urgent Message: While acute gastroenteritis is typically self-limiting, inappropriate or excessive use of over-the-counter antimotility agents like loperamide can lead to serious complications—such as bowel obstruction or ileus—highlighting the critical need for patient education on safe medication use. Badi Eghterafi, DO; Nazanin Hazhir Karzar, MD Key Words: Gastroenteritis, Over The Counter Medications, Loperamide, Case Report, Bowel Obstruction Abstract Introduction: Acute gastroenteritis (AGE) is a common condition characterized by rapid-onset diarrhea, often accompanied by nausea, vomiting, …
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Using artificial intelligence (AI) to generate notes to document patient visits was linked to improvements in clinician burnout, as published in JAMA Network Open. Researchers surveyed 1,430 clinicians from 2 different health systems who used ambient documentation technology. They found physicians at Mass General Brigham reported a 21.2% absolute reduction in burnout with the tools, as the proportion of clinicians reporting burnout decreased from 50.6% to 29.4% at 42 days and from 52.6% to 30.7% …
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According to detailed state-level data collected by Experity across urgent care centers, Texas (30.9%) and Utah (30.8%) are leading the nation in COVID-19 positivity rates through August 18, 2025. Summer’s big picture, dating back to June 1, shows the 7-day positivity rate overall has grown from 5% to 20% for U.S. urgent cares—a rate that is lower than this time last year. Positivity rates in 2024 peaked at 31.3% in August, according to Experity. With …
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Adding a new urgent care rooftop represents a significant investment by a health system. At the same time, every new urgent care ideally opens up a reliable referral stream for the institution’s other services to boost patient volume. This has been the prevailing model for health systems, but some markets are now witnessing a shift toward joint ventures and acquisitions rather than new builds, according to a report in Modern Healthcare. Alan Ayers, MBA, MAcc, …
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Under the extreme temperatures in Maricopa County, Arizona, 35 heat-related deaths have been confirmed this year so far by the county medical examiner’s office. However, the real-world total is possibly much higher, according to an analysis by The Guardian. The state is on track to witness its hottest August on record with temperatures hitting at least 110°F nearly every day so far. In Philadelphia, 5 heat-related deaths have been confirmed, and Maryland’s Department of Health …
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Children often experience less severe symptoms from the SARS-CoV-2 infection, and a study in the Journal of Infectious Diseases found that kids’ frequent rhinovirus infections may be at least one factor that offers protection from both the risk and severity of SARS-CoV-2. Participants in this 6-month study (May 2020-February 2021) who had rhinovirus in the previous 30 days had a 48% lower risk of contracting SARS-CoV-2 and, if infected, showed 9.6-fold lower viral loads (p=0.0031). …
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