Will We See Retail Health Clinics in the U.K.?

The demand for cheaper and more accessible healthcare in the U.S. has led to the proliferation of retail health clinics, which offer simple medical treatments for walk-in patients. Could a similar model work in the UK?

Retail health clinics have succeeded in capturing the US public's imagination because they are organized around principles valued by their customers. Retail health clinics:

• Offer easy access to healthcare
• Are backed by strong consumer brands, such as Wal-Mart (WMT) and CVS Pharmacy (CVS)
• Offer value for money, created by the focus on specific treatments, low turnaround time and the use of non-doctor clinical staff
• Are regarded positively by regulators

As a result, they have tapped into both revealed and latent demand and boast high customer satisfaction rates. In terms of a business model, the obvious comparison is with the hospitality industry. Just as motels forego room service and fancy decor to offer clean, comfortable and economical rooms for the night, so retail health clinics dispense with the complex and costly apparatus of full-service medicine to offer quick treatments for minor ailments.

Conclusion: PA Consulting, a global management consultancy, believes that so-called “retail health clinics” in the U.K. have the potential to provide a wider variety of care for patients, delivering more convenience and greater choice. (News report here)

Comments

[Brighteyes]

Having lived in the UK for a decade, I believe they already have such a system. Let me explain. When you get a cold or health discomfort such as splinters, bruses, flu or stomach pain; you go to the GP at his/her Surgery that is nothing more than a CVS Clinic. They write prescriptions, dispense plasters (band aids) give injections and recommend further care from a specialist or hospital. This is all covered under NHS (National Health Service) and funded by an enormous tax rate. US citizens think this is wonderful, having FREE health care. Talk to a working man or woman to find out how free it really is. So you see, they already have CVS clinics, they are called surgeries and the GPs come to your house if you have a need at night. The only thing a CVS Clinic would give the Brits is no appointment for a visit to the GP. The downside is there aren't very many stores open after 5:00pm GMT.

[Zagreus Ammon]

The question is does anyone care. Retail clinics are a bad idea that succeed marginally because of the inefficiencies in the US system and the primary care shortage. Neither of these conditions exist in the UK.