Anne Howe

MDs the Right Medicine for Reade's Clinic Biz

January 28, 2010

FROM RETAILWIRE:
Most in-store health clinics in the U.S. are staffed by nurse practitioners. Duane Reade in New York has taken another tack and partnered with companies to offer in-store clinics manned by doctors. Is there a competitive advantage for retailers using doctors instead of nurse practitioners to operate in-store clinics?      [more...]

Using docs instead of nurse practitioners may in fact drive greater adoption of retail clinics, and I agree it will drive re-routing of patients from ERs to a more appropriate setting for various conditions. I think the key is to solve for the payment issue, and to socialize the key differences in "why would a shopper chose a doc staffed option" over a Walgreens clinic staffed by a nurse?

I also think it returns nursing care to its roots and adds to the diagnostic competency most docs are trained for.