Accreditation: Coordinate and oversee UCA accreditation process in conjunction with Certification Committee. Establish and monitor process, policies, and standards. Oversee Joint Commission partnership.

Certification: Oversee a process whereby urgent care centers are reviewed and compared to the policies and procedures and essential operational standards as approved by UCA. Reviews and recommends to the UCA Board of Directors the approval of urgent care centers for certification and recertification.

UCA recognizes and celebrates individuals and organizations that make significant contributions to the urgent care industry or UCA itself or that contribute to humanitarian efforts, through their achievements, service, or innovations. This helps drive our member brand and increases public awareness of urgent care. The committee creates and oversees the process to select worthy award recipients from call for nominations to promotion of recipients. The current awards include Lifetime Membership, Outstanding Achievement, Advocacy, Community Service, Humanitarian, Rising Star and Quality and Safety.Oversee development of marketing/communications plans, programs and policies (may require individual task forces) on Web site, social media, UCAccess electronic newsletter(s), public relations, UCA presence in JUCM, and general outreach. Assure that positions adopted by the BOD on public affairs and/or public awareness are presented clearly, consistently and persuasively. Help to monitor industry news and identify when there is a need for UCA to “take a stand” publicly.

To establish and update survey objectives, questions, data management, and reporting for the UCA Benchmarking Survey in order to assist members, urgent care industry, media, and other audiences in assessing the industry, managing the quality and scope of their centers, and developing profiles of the industry which may be used as industry benchmarks. Oversee and assess promotion and recruitment of participants and sales of survey outcomes.

Proactively and responsively facilitate appropriate legislative, regulatory and reimbursement advocacy for urgent care. Establish a network of professionals to monitor the activities of and exchange information with those involved in making decisions about public and private funding and regulatory issues for urgent care-related health care at both the national and state levels. Facilitate, review, and oversee advocacy for urgent care in the private and public sector. The UCA leadership and members of the Health and Public Policy Committee are working to educate Congress and other key health care policymakers and stakeholders on the urgent care industry by continuing to update and implement an advocacy agenda to increase awareness about the role urgent care centers in rapidly evolving health care systems.

To develop, propose, and present programs that will enhance the value of UCA events to the exhibitor while increasing the interest and overall experience of the exhibit area to conference attendees.

The Committee is responsible for promoting appropriate antibiotic stewardship, education and prescribing standards in the urgent care industry. Guided by the CDC Core Elements of Outpatient Antibiotic Stewardship, the ABS Committee develops evidence-based strategies, resources and tools, education and training for urgent care clinicians and centers. The ABS Committee’s primary focus is to reduce unnecessary antibiotic use and preserve the utility of these life-saving drugs by improving clinical outcomes, coordinating industry policies and standards, and reducing activities that promote antimicrobial resistance.