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Hospitals, Don't Fear Retail Health Clinics. Join Them.

 |  By Marianne@example.com  
   January 30, 2013

Earlier this year, like many other cities around the country, Boston had a bit of a flu scare. On January 9, after 700 cases had been reported, Mayor Thomas M. Menino declared a public health emergency. To compare, only 70 cases were reported for the entire flu season of 2012.

That evening I stopped into CVS pharmacy and was alarmed to see the waiting area overflowing. There were so many people that the only space available space to sit was on the floor.

They were all there to get a flu shot at the MinuteClinic.

On my walk home I passed the neighborhood health center, which is affiliated with a major hospital. The waiting room was nearly empty.

Remember when we weren't all that worried about retail health?

The popularity of walk-in health clinics has been on the rise nationwide. According to a Harris Interactive/HealthDay poll, 27% of adults said they have used either walk-in retail clinics (19%) or work-based clinics (11%) to receive medical year in the past two years. In 2008, just 7% gave the same response.

Younger adults were more likely to use retail clinics, the survey found. Among respondents, 40% of adults age 25 – 29 had used a retail or work-based clinic, versus 15% of adults age 65 and older.

As someone who falls in the former age group, this makes perfect sense. Most young people don't have many major health concerns, so stopping in a CVS or Walgreens for a flu shot or a rapid strep test is just so much easier.

Why call your doctor, make an appointment for what's likely to be an inconvenient time, and take time off of work to go to that appointment, when instead you could just pop into the local pharmacy on your commute home?

The question for healthcare marketers, however, is where do hospitals fit in? Hospital leaders want to catch this young demographic now. Before they're getting married and having babies, hospitals want to recruit a new generation of brand advocates who will result in downstream revenue for years to come.

While some organizations have experimented with setting up their own branded retail clinics, in many cases it's easier to partner with the preexisting players. Pharmacy giant Walgreens is seeking to grow its in-store health clinic business by offering full primary care services in five to seven years.

CVS and Walgreens are also increasing the number of walk-in clinics and the services they offer. It may not be in a hospital's best interest to go up against regional or national retail powerhouses.

But it may be in their interest to find opportunities for partnership.

UT Medicine San Antonio and Barnabas Health in New Jersey have both recently entered into clinical collaborations with nearby CVS MinuteClinics. Under the agreement, each organization will serve as the medical director for several MinuteClinics in their area.

Each will also collaborate with CVS on patient education and disease management initiatives. In both cases, CVS and the hospitals are working toward fully integrating electronic medical record systems to streamline communication around all aspects of each individual's care.

The hospitals will accept patients who need a level of care that cannot be provided at the MinuteClinics.

"It is recognized that ready access to quality care and preventive services are essential for the well-being of our community," Carlos Rosende, MD, executive director of UT Medicine told San Antonio Business Journal.

"Our association brings those key elements of the MinuteClinic concept together with our expertise in comprehensive primary care and in the full spectrum of medical and surgical specialties. Our collaboration will extend superb medical care to a greater segment of our population."

By joining with CVS or any other large pharmacy chain, hospitals can create a new channel for downstream revenue without taking on much risk. The pharmacies have the customer base, the national branding machine, and the deep pockets. The hospital brings its expertise, its physicians, and its clinical reputation.

And if you provide good, swift care, that elusive younger generation will remember their experience with your organization when they have a health problem that can't be solved in the cold remedy aisle.

Marianne Aiello is a contributing writer at HealthLeaders Media.

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