STORE-BASED HEALTH CLINICS CATCHING ON FOR MINOR ILLS.Byline: SUSAN ABRAM Staff Writer RESEDA -- Curiosity led hair stylist Luann Jarvis into her neighborhood CVS (1) (Concurrent Versions System) A version control system for Unix that was initially developed as a series of shell scripts in the mid-1980s. CVS maintains the changes between one source code version and another and stores all the changes in one file. drugstore Tuesday morning, where she found two nurse practitioners nurse practitioner n. Abbr. NP A registered nurse with special training for providing primary health care, including many tasks customarily performed by a physician. eager to answer her questions. Jarvis, 58, wondered about the kind of health care services available to her at the Reseda store's newly opened MinuteClinic. Another one is in Glendale. The company, owned by a partnership that includes two doctors, is expected to announce today that 11 more MinuteClinics will open in Orange County before the end of the year. "I think this is a great idea," Jarvis said, after asking for a handful of pamphlets to share with her friends. "I don't get sick that often, but it's right around the corner from me and I have no insurance." The so-called retail-clinic movement is under way in California, where those such as MinuteClinic provide what the founders call a resourceful re·source·ful adj. Able to act effectively or imaginatively, especially in difficult situations. re·source  ful·ly adv. remedy to alleviate long emergency- room and urgent-care
waits for minor illnesses.
So far, MinuteClinic owners say their model is catching on with consumers who can seek care in 15 minutes or less for such illnesses as allergies, pink eye and swimmer's ear swimmer's ear otitis externa. swimmer's ear Acute diffuse external otitis Sports medicine The most common form of external otitis, occurring primarily in summer swimmers Clinical Pain, serous, then seropurulent discharge Treatment , as well as skin conditions such as cold sores cold sore: see herpes simplex. , minor burns and wart wart, circumscribed outgrowth of the skin caused by a filterable virus that is readily transmitted. Warts may appear anywhere on the skin but are most common on the hands. removal. This month, flu shots are available for $30. The company has logged a million visits since the first MinuteClinic opened in Minnesota in 2000, officials said. "It's about access and convenience," said Michael Howe Michael Howe was a bushranger in Van Diemen's Land (now Tasmania). Howe was born at Pontefract, Yorkshire, England, in 1787. He served two years on a merchant vessel at Hull before deserting to join the navy as a seaman. , CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. of MinuteClinic. "We're able to make it much more affordable. And this is high quality, very affordable, convenient access for simple health care solutions." A menu of ailments and costs can be found on an electronic board in front of the MinuteClinic examination room, positioned near the CVS pharmacy. Treatments range in cost from $30 to $90. All are administered by a nurse practitioner, who can write prescriptions. But while some praise the emergence of retail clinics as a valuable response to consumer demand for quick, easy, health care, others say they are concerned about the quality, or that consumers will come to rely on retail clinics as their permanent medical home. "It's too soon to really tell if they catch on, because at the end of the day, people want a physician who knows their medical history," said Kimberly Wyard, CEO of Northeast Valley Health Corp., which operates 10 community clinics in the San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. . "Retail clinics won't be gearing toward chronic, complicated diabetes, and other problems," Wyard said. "We could see some shifts to the kind of patients we see, if the easy stuff goes to MinuteClinic." The American Medical Association American Medical Association (AMA), professional physicians' organization (founded 1847). Its goals are to protect the interests of American physicians, advance public health, and support the growth of medical science. has listed guidelines aimed toward retail clinics that will ensure proper medical care. "Store-based health clinics can offer patients an option for routine health care services and AMA (Automatic Message Accounting) The recording and reporting of telephone calls within a telephone system. It includes the calling and called parties and start and stop times of the call. guidance will help ensure quality care," said Dr. William Hazel of the AMA. "For patients to receive optimal care, store-based health clinics should provide a limited and well-defined list of health care services and take steps to ensure continuity of care with a physician in the local community." Some ongoing studies are tracking the demographics The attributes of people in a particular geographic area. Used for marketing purposes, population, ethnic origins, religion, spoken language, income and age range are examples of demographic data. of all the retail clinics now in operation, including those that are not operated by MinuteClinic. Preliminary results show that most consumers are being referred to physicians or emergency departments in a timely manner if the ailment ail·ment n. A physical or mental disorder, especially a mild illness. appears to be more serious, which is a positive sign that the clinics are effective as an important first contact. "I think a really important question is if you go to a retail clinic with a basic acute need, are you going to be treated appropriately?" said Margaret Laws, who works with the underserved for the California Healthcare Association. Some studies are finding positive results. "It's been interesting to watch," Laws said. "As we've talked to a lot of players out there, everyone acknowledges that having more sites where people can go is a positive. People want and need that." MinuteClinic nurse practitioner Elizabeth Rowe Elizabeth Rowe [née Singer] (1674–1737), poet and novelist, was the eldest daughter of Elizabeth Portnell and Walter Singer, a dissenting minister. Born in Ilchester, Somersetshire, England, she began writing at the age of twelve and when she was nineteen, began a said the company is working on helping patients understand the role the facilities play. By law, a nurse practitioner who prescribes medication within a retail clinic inside a drugstore cannot lead the consumer toward purchasing a certain brand of medicine. And all the patient's medical records are electronic, so that if a Reseda client visits another state, he or she's current file can be easily found. "What we want people to know is we are not a replacement for those seeking a primary medical home," she said. "We provide referrals to physicians who have space. "This works because our society has come to the point where we need convenient health care," Rowe said. susan.abram(at)dailynews.com (818) 713-3664 CAPTION(S): photo Photo: (color) Ahna Landin, a nurse practitioner at the new MinuteClinic located in the CVS Pharmacy in Reseda, talks with Luann Jarvis of Reseda. The company is expected to announce today that 11 more MinuteClinics will open in Orange County this year. David Crane/Staff Photographer |
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