Pharmaprix is expanding its care clinics network starting in 2025 after a successful year long pilot program. This comes as the movement in the U.S. begins to flutter.
Part of the Shoppers Drug Mart Corporation, which is owned by Loblaw, Pharmaprix is a pharmacy chain in Quebec, Canada, that offers a variety of services, and care clinics is an innovative concept that gives customers access to various aspects of primary care.
The average surface area of a care clinic is 450 square feet and the services available include hormonal contraception and treatment for shingles, acne, urinary tract infections, and allergic rhinitis. Pharmacists can also administer vaccines and monitor and adjust medication for various chronic issues such as blood pressure, diabetes, and hypothyroidism.
Five pharmacies were part of the pilot project and produced the following results:
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More than 30,000 patients were seen in these pharmacy care clinics
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Nearly 10,000 consultations were held for common health problems such as urinary tract infections in women, gastric reflux, and eczema
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Pharmacists monitored 9,000 patients with chronic diseases, with 20% reaching their treatment goals
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About 1,675 rapid strep tests were performed
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Pharmacies administered 2.5 times more vaccines than pharmacies without a care clinic
The Canadian government intends to broaden pharmacists’ scope of practice and introduce a more agile regulatory framework, allowing the pharmacy profession to adapt and evolve more easily to meet the needs of the population and the health system.
Pharmacy-led health care has experienced mixed results in the U.S.
CVS Health plans to open about 26 Oak Street Health clinics inside existing CVS stores in 14 states by the end of 2024.
The retailer has opened eight of the dual-branded locations since January, and another 18 are slated to open by the end of the year.
Walgreens Boots Alliance opened several VillageMD clinics located inside or adjacent to stores, but in the attempt to shed $1 billion in capital costs the Northbrook, Ill.-based retailer has spent the last few months shuttering clinics. Walgreens no longer offers them in Illinois and Florida.
Even CVS Health has dropped clinics out of its network. Earlier in the year the Woonsocket, R.I.-based company closed 25 of its MinuteClinic locations in metro Los Angeles. CVS said the decision aimed “to help support future growth and design the next evolution of community health destinations.”
Still, on-site clinics are a proven attraction for shoppers, according to a white paper released by Placer.ai titled “The Healthcare Opportunity in Grocery” released last week.
Kroger’s Dillon stores with clinics captured 93% more visits than its banner-wide average in the first half of 2024, the report noted. Kroger stores with clinics saw a 43% boost in foot traffic over its banner-wide average, as did Fry’s at 19.2%, King Soopers at 16.5%, and H-E-B at 14.5%.