OnSiteClinics.Org

Retail Medicine Gains New Credibility with USA Today Article

The news here is not that the retail clinics are booming.  The news is that it is considered news in one of the most important consumer outlets in the country (USA TODAY).  An article in this publication, on a “big news” Monday is going to lend tremendous credibility to retail medicine.  That’s OK, I guess, since this is a credible delivery of primary care — and it is obviously being well received by the health-consuming public.  The proof is the quoted stat that there are now 1,250 of these sites as opposed to only 175 in 2006.  Based on the alerts we watch, they continue to grow and they are a phenomenon that, like all retail functions, will be started whenever the demand seems obvious and closed when they do not produce significant volume.  The interesting number for us might be how many of them have closed since 2006 when they did not achieve the necessary volume.

This makes sense since the idea is to serve a market and if the market does not respond, the best option is to redeploy resources elsewhere.  We see a lot of reports of clinic closings but the net result is still compelling — 1,250 sites and growing.  The biggest – CVS with 600 sites.  The USA Today article reported that they added 45 just this past year.  (Disclosure – I got my last flu shot at a Walgreens.  I did get a notice from my “medical home” to come in and get my shot but the Walgreen’s option was way more convenient.)

Moral for on-site providers and sponsoring employers?  Retail clinics have a role to play in the benefits mosaic.  Employees and beneficiaries are going to be driving by many “med-care-lite” offices where they can see a McDoctor and get a limited slate of services in a convenient and consumer-friendly environment.  If your goal is to have integrated care, you need to recognize this trend and work with it – not against it.  The article closes with a statement by a CVS practitioner that seems rather obvious, “We’re 30 feet from diagnosis to pharmacy.  I’m very busy, and this is one-stop shopping — very convenient.”  I get it.