Pub. 2 2020 Issue 6

Updates on AccessingMedical Care forWork Injuries andDrug Testing MARTA SILAKKA, RN, BSN, CCM, COHN-S NURSE CASE MANAGER, NHADA — WCT W e recently shared an article on the increasing wait time at some urgent care locations for medical treatment and drug testing. Well, in typical 2020 fashion, some things have changed already. The centers that were offering online check-in have temporar- ily paused that service as the volume of patients contin- ues to grow, and the service was not showing the benefit as hoped. Urgent care facilities are seeing a continued increase in the number of patients they are seeing, and there is no end in sight for this increase. COVID-19 cases in NH are on the rise, flu shot season has arrived, and flu season is just around the corner. Here are some updated tips on seeking medical care and drug testing. Drug Testing Plan ahead Don’t leave the drug testing until the last minute. As soon as the employment offer has been made, encourage the new employee to seek drug testing sooner rather than later. With the benefit of instant results, some employers and employ- ees leave the test to the last minute knowing the results will be the same day. With the risk of long wait times, encourage the testing to be done ASAP, and then if they are still facing a long wait time, they can reschedule at another time or call us for other options. Please remember you may not allow a person to work until you receive the test result. Be open to alternate providers Most employers use one clinic for all their drug testing. If you are finding long wait times, give us a call and we can offer other clinic options. Consider using a clinic that only sees occupational medicine patients/employee health patients. They are busy too, but not with the treatment of “sick” patients and may have a shorter wait time. Don’t be afraid to drive If one clinic is busy, they may let you know that another one of their clinics isn’t as busy; a 30-minute drive to another clinic is better than a 2 hour wait time. Medical Care for Work Injuries Calling NHADA vs. Calling 911 Remember to always call us before seeking treatment for a work-related injury UNLESS it is a life or death emergency; then always call 911 and follow up with us after to fill us in on all the details. Contacting the NHADA WCT team before assisting your injured worker with medical treatment allows us to assist with the most appropriate specialty referral within the managed care network. Urgent Care vs. Specialty Care As easy and quick a drive to local urgent care can be for medical treatment, it can also be met with long wait times D R I V E 14