The Society for Pediatric Urgent Care (SPUC) 12th Annual Conference, held March 12–14, 2026, at Seattle Children’s Research Institute, convened clinicians nationwide to advance excellence in pediatric urgent care through evidence-based learning and collaboration. The conference was organized under the leadership of Program Co-Chairs Deirdre Stewart, MD and Jay Santos, MD.
A pre-conference Leadership Summit highlighted key priorities for the field, including quality improvement, EHR optimization, employee engagement, and building psychological safety, alongside practical strategies to balance staffing, scheduling, and provider satisfaction.
The conference opened with a keynote on antibiotic stewardship, emphasizing the urgent care clinician’s role in reducing unnecessary antibiotic use while maintaining high-quality, family-centered care. Clinical sessions spanned high-yield topics such as toxicology, rheumatology, vaccine-preventable illnesses, dental emergencies, emergent foreign bodies, head injuries, the limping child, and male genitourinary conditions, with a consistent focus on structured evaluation and recognition of high-risk presentations.
Hands-on workshops reinforced procedural excellence in splinting, suturing, and foreign body removal, alongside focused training in ophthalmologic evaluation and assessment of non-accidental trauma, including physical abuse mimics.
Scholarly activity was showcased through poster presentations and abstract sessions, including the Mike Moran Scholar Award Lecture, “Reducing 911 Activation from a Pediatric Freestanding Urgent Care Site,” by Dr. Hayley Ross highlighting innovative approaches to improving resource utilization and patient flow in urgent care settings. Journal club and case-based discussions further emphasized the application of current evidence to clinical practice.
Overall, the conference reinforced a national commitment to delivering high-quality, efficient, and evidence-based pediatric urgent care, while addressing evolving challenges in workforce sustainability, safety, and systems-level improvement.
