The health care manager
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Medication errors present a significant hazard to patient safety and have been increasingly in the news as studies correlate the nursing shortage and patient death. This article discusses strategies to decrease medication errors and increase patient safety during medication administration.
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The health care manager · Jul 2003
Comparative StudyHospital-affiliated pediatric urgent care clinics: a necessary extension for emergency departments?
This study analyzed whether a children's hospital urgent care clinic helped increase market share. Patient demographics and utilization patterns between the suburban clinic and urban emergency department were compared over a three-year period (July 1999 to June 2002). Using data from a standardized billing form, all patient visits (clinic: 36,924; emergency department: 160,888) were analyzed. ⋯ There was a 3.6% increase in the number of visits in the after-hours clinic and a 1.6% decrease in the number of emergency department visits between year one and year three--data combined giving an overall 4.8% increase in the number of visits. Data show that the offsite urgent care clinic located in a suburban area increased the overall number of visits with a large number of well-insured patients. Additionally, this study provided data on where the clinic could expand medical care for the community.