May 07, 2026
UrgentChart is a cloud-based electronic medical record (EMR) platform built specifically for Urgent Care.
It streamlines clinical workflows, integrates with multiple vendors and connects systems into one centralized hub—helping organizations improve efficiency, reduce costs and deliver high-quality patient care.
In this episode, Joseph Chow, MD, MBA, reflects on his remarkable journey through Urgent Care, having worked nearly every role across the field. He shares how these experiences shaped his perspective on the field and reinforced the wide range of career paths available within Urgent Care medicine.
Challenging a common misconception, Dr. Chow shares how meaningful patient relationships can still thrive in an Urgent Care setting. He reflects on the long-term patient connections he continues to maintain and why those relationships remain central to his work.
The episode wraps with career advice for clinicians and professionals considering their next move. Dr. Chow encourages listeners to put themselves in rooms with other leaders—especially at the UCA Convention—network openly and explore the many paths the field has to offer. For those still figuring out what they want to do, Urgent Care’s diversity provides endless opportunities to learn, connect and gain new perspectives by engaging with peers from across the field.
The Employer Coalition of Louisiana Summit brings together employers, healthcare leaders and policymakers to focus on improving healthcare value, transparency and access for today’s workforce, recognizing that employees are increasingly informed healthcare consumers.
As Steve Sellars, CEO of UCA, shared from his experience at the summit, many of the conversations strongly resonated with Urgent Care’s growing role in healthcare:
“The message in the room was clear that employees are important healthcare consumers now. They expect transparency, convenient, and choice. Louisiana Secretary of Health Bruce Greenstein set a compelling tone about the importance of access to care, especially cancer screenings. But, the gap between screening and follow-through is a patient engagement problem. The navigation and support is where the real work is. This also resonates for Urgent Care. We’re often the first point of contact for patients that often need to be connected elsewhere within the healthcare continuum. Urgent Care is well-positioned to be part of the answer for patient care navigation needs.”
Dr. Thomas is a seasoned Urgent Care physician and healthcare executive currently serving as Regional Vice President at Next Level Urgent Care, where she oversees clinical and operational performance across 15 established centers in the Houston region and has supported the organization’s growth from 16 to 44 locations.
A graduate of the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston Family & Community Medicine residency, Dr. Thomas pairs deep clinical expertise with strategic leadership, having led large multidisciplinary teams, implemented evidence‑based policies and driven innovation in occupational medicine and Urgent Care delivery.
Fellowship in CUCM recognizes Dr. Thomas’s significant contributions to the practice and advancement of Urgent Care medicine, and we congratulate her on this well‑deserved achievement.
Urgent Updates are curated highlights of guidelines, reviewed by (and some directly coming from) Urgent Care clinicians. These highlights represent the actual intent of these articles and how they relate to the practice of Urgent Care medicine.
Wednesday, May 13 | 11:00 a.m. CT
Urgent care posted negative margins for the first time in 2024. Break-even sits at 43 visits per day, and most operators aren’t hitting it. Leading operators are running a different model.
Join Teresa Asma (COO, Solv Health) and Brandon Robertson (Founder, UCP Merchant Medicine) for a 45-minute session on what that looks like in practice.
Learning Objectives: