As the weather gets cooler and the leaves start to change into their brilliance we are once again approaching flu shot season. This year as I practice in a retail setting I am once again impressed at the commitment from retail health providers in providing quality, accessible, affordable health solutions for our communities. We will be providing ...

Welcome to my blog an ongoing discussion into the world of retail health. Today I am going to think out loud about children and school/camp/sports physicals. I wonder where or how should we as compassionate professionals should put the line in regards to treating children. Now bear in mind that the clinic that I work in allows no follow-up visits. ...

One of the primary roles of a Retail Clinician is decision making. These decisions can rank from minor day-to-day operational decision to major clinical decision. In this setting Retail Nurse Practitioners are forced to make many decisions that are not routine in other settings. These decisions can be complex and pose major challenges for Retail ...

I began working in a convenient care setting earlier this year. I worked in multiple clinics in anticipation of the opening of the site where I would be assigned. Although this experience was helpful in preparing me for the new clinic, I very much looked forward to having a clinic “home.” My home clinic opened last week. This experience of ...

So, I'm back from the first ever retail clinician conference. I hope it isn't the last since it was wonderful. Over 300 people were there when only 120 or so were expected. Hi, to Lisa and Laura and their friend. I wrote your names down but lost the paper. I told y'all your name would be here, so blog back. I'm sure your visit to the spa was as ...

A study was recently published by the RAND corporation that addressed economic effects of retail health clinics. It claims that there is a mixed bag of economic up- and downsides to retail health care: although the care provided is excellent and serves a population that does not have a primary care provider, cash flow is being diverted from ...

It seemed that the retail health clinics planned for the Boston area might never open, after battles with Boston's Mayor Tom Menino who claimed that retail health clinics were ''making money off of sick people'' and attempts by lawmakers to curb clinic operation in stores that sell tobacco products. ADVANCE has been following this ...

The one thing I have always enjoyed about being a nurse is helping patients and making a difference in the lives of patients. I have struggled for the last few years working in primary care trying to achieve this type of satisfaction. Don’t get me wrong, there have been moments during my last 10 years of practice when I know I have made a ...

I have just started an additional role within my retail health world. I have taken over the scheduling for four clinics. This brought me to the question; why and/or how I could entice more practitioners into the retail health field. Then I thought of my blog. Of course one must realize not all retail clinics have the same management or protocols ...

This question of whether to collect payment prior to treatment at the retail clinic still does not have consensus. May colleagues and I often discuss what should be the best practice for collecting payment?.As a nurse practitioner, I like to collect the fees after I have completed my service; however, another NP colleague likes to collect the fees ...