Did you know that Solantic Baptist Urgent Care can help keep your company healthy? Employers and health insurance leaders across the country are booking their spots for the National Corporate Wellness Conference in Los Angeles Sept. 20-22. While there, they’ll learn what smart business leaders and Solantic already know – that healthy, happy employees contribute to your company’s bottom line by boosting productivity and employee morale.

Solantic Baptist Urgent Care's occupational medicine and executive physical services can help keep you, your employees and your company healthy.

A 2004 study by Cornell University shows that “presenteeism” (employees showing up for work despite being ill) costs the American economy $180 billion in lost productivity annually. A 2009 survey by CCH Inc., which provides employment law information for human resources professionals, concluded that unscheduled employee absenteeism (primarily for illnesses) cost companies an average of $755 per year. And substance abuse and addiction costs American companies billions in absenteeism, insurance costs (including insurance for treatment of health conditions exacerbated by substance abuse) and related costs each year.

Solantic Baptist Urgent Care can help keep your employees healthy and your business running smoothly with our occupational medicine services. Each of our urgent care centers located throughout Florida offers confidential employment and pre-employment drug screens, immunizations, X-ray and EKG services, vision testing, hearing testing and pulmonary functioning testing, plus physicals for DOT workers, OSHA physicals and customized examinations tailored for your company’s specific needs. We also offer an “Executive Physical” designed to help evaluate an executive employee or candidate’s ability to handle the rigors and strains of a high-pressure positions. HIV and STD serologic testing also is available.

Whether you’re an HR professional for a large company with thousands of employees or a small business owner with a staff of just a few, Solantic Baptist Urgent Care offers occupational medicine at a budget that works for your company or department. To keep your business in top shape, contact the center nearest you for more information Solantic’s occupational medicine and corporate wellness services today.

Any given month or week of the year is dedicated to some particular health issue, and this month, Solantic Baptist Urgent Care urges you to recognize April’s status as Alcohol Awareness Month.

Alcohol abuse is prevalent among various demographic groups including teenagers who fall prey to peer pressure, college students who binge drink at parties and local bars, professionals aiming to relax after a long day of work and senior citizens who find solace in alcohol during what can be a lonely and reflective time of life. If you’ve ever forgotten what you did while drinking, if your family or friends have talked with you about concerns over your alcohol intake, or if you find that that you drink to deal with loneliness, sadness or anger, you may well have an alcohol abuse or addiction problem.

Solantic Baptist Urgent Care recommends several tips to help you curb or cut out your drinking. First, write down your reasons for taking control of your drinking, such as getting better sleep, improving your health, being more productive at work or improving your relationships. Post these in a spot you’ll see each day for a visual reminder of the better life that awaits you. If you drink socially, alternate alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. For instance, enjoy a glass of wine, then a glass of sparkling water. Drink both slowly and keep a journal listing each drink you have as another visual reminder to help you avoid overindulgence. Steer clear of temptation by keeping a small amount or no alcohol at home and carefully plan your socializing calendar. Rather than meeting a friend at the local bar Friday night, plan a workout in the park or a shopping trip on Saturday instead.

When you visit Solantic Baptist Urgent Care for your annual physical, be sure to talk with our physicians or nurse practitioners about your concerns. Our expert medical staff is trained to pinpoint many lifestyle factors that are potentially harmful and can help tailor a plan to help you address these issues and live a healthier lifestyle. If you are an employer and suspect that an employee may have a substance abuse problem, any Solantic Baptist Urgent Care location can conduct reliable alcohol and drug screenings. In fact, you or your company representative can set up an account for all your occupational health and screening needs by emailing us at occhealth@solantic.com.

If you have questions or concerns about your alcohol intake, Solantic Baptist Urgent Care has nearly 40 locations throughout Florida ready to help. Visit our website to find a location near you and set an appointment today.

Solantic Walk-In Urgent Care knows firsthand the pressures of a business executive and the importance of an annual executive physical. After all, we’re a business too and we’ve got top-notch financial, marketing and other executives working hard to help us keep delivering the best urgent care available while growing our company (see the news report about our joint venture with Baptist Health and look for three new Northeast Florida locations this year).

Unfortunately, that high-achiever lifestyle typical of C-Suite dwellers and other junior and senior level executives means that health often takes second place to landing that big new account. Long hours, meals on the run and stress eventually will take their toll. So while it means a time investment, taking care of your health will pay off. A study by the University of Michigan Management Research Center showed that executives who underwent regular executive physical exams had 20% fewer health claims and missed 45% fewer workdays than those who skip annual exams.

To help keep you in top form Solantic Walk-In Urgent Care offers annual executive physicals designed to screen for all the health risk factors common in those patients who live the high-achiever’s lifestyle. We run an EKG to help identify potential heart complications, test for blood pressure and blood sugar levels and perform vision and hearing tests, plus many more general and executive-specific health screens. And a Solantic urgent care physician will go over all of your lifestyle choices in and out of the office to help pinpoint health and behavior risk factors and recommend ways to improve.

Solantic executive physicals are competitively priced and convenient. Schedule yours any of our nearly 30 urgent care centers throughout Florida today. We’ll help keep you off the surgeon’s table and winning at the negotiating table.

If you’re thinking about your New Year’s health resolutions, Solantic Walk-In Urgent Care and the American Heart Association can help. The AHA has set a few long-term resolutions of its own, all aimed at helping you improve your cardiovascular health. And you can stop by any Solantic urgent care center for a thorough, personalized health assessment.

The AHA recently defined “ideal cardiovascular health” for the first time recently, identifying seven health factors and lifestyle behaviors that lead to a healthier, stronger heart. The goal is to improve the cardiovascular health of all Americans by 20 percent and reduce deaths from cardiovascular diseases and stroke by 20 percent – all by the year 2020.

Dubbed “Life’s Simple 7,” the AHA-identified healthy heart factors for adults as:

•    Never smoked or quit more than one year ago
•    Body mass index less than 25 kilograms per square meter
•    Physical activity of at least 150 minutes (moderate) or 75 minutes (vigorous) each week
•    Four to five of the key components of a healthy diet consistent with current AHA guideline recommendations
•    Total cholesterol of less than 200 mg/dL
•    Blood pressure below 120/80 mm Hg
•    Fasting blood glucose less than 100 mg/dL

The new stated goals come on the heels of the AHA’s successful effort to reduce death by heart disease and stroke by 25 percent by 2010. You can get started on your own 2020 healthy heart plan today by scheduling a physical at any one of our nearly 30 Solantic urgent care centers located throughout Florida. We offer basic annual physicals tailored for children and youth to 17 years old; adults 18-44; and adults 45 and older. Specialized physicals for athletes and executives also are available, as are OSHA and DOT/DOE physicals that may be required for certain jobs such as driving any commercial vehicle. If you’re planning a surgery, Solantic Walk-In Urgent Care also offers pre-op physicals to assure you’re healthy enough to undergo a successful operation.

With each physical, a Solantic physician will let you know exactly where your health, including your cardiovascular health, stands. This will help determine your best cardiovascular health improvement plan, getting you started on both your own New Year’s health resolutions and the AHA’s 2020 heart-healthy America plan. Browse our website to find a Solantic Walk-In Urgent Care location near you, make an appointment and even have directions to our offices texted to your phone.