The evolution of retail clinics will see services move from treating minor acute illness to delivering primary care and managing chronic disease, according to an article on the MedCity News website.
Angela Patterson, chief nurse practitioner officer for the more than 1,100 CVS Health Minute Clinics, said retail clinics have to move away from “sore throats and flu shots.”
This means treating patients holistically and to serving as a “safety net for primary care” in providing screening, monitoring and initiating treatment for chronic disease, she said.
Retail clinics must make better use of technological advances so they are not just working in the isolation of their particular facility.