Business
AAFP sets list of desired attributes for retail health clinics
NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted Jan. 30, 2006
Health clinics established in retail outlets, such as drug stores and groceries, should have a well-defined and limited scope of services and have formal connections to physicians in the community, according to guidelines recently announced by the American Academy of Family Physicians.
The AAFP board settled on the list of desired attributes in December 2005. It issued them to help frame the discussion about retail clinics. The clinics, which often are staffed by a nurse practitioner or physician assistant, are designed to address minor ailments quickly.
But to ensure that the clinics remain true to their original purpose, the AAFP recommends that they should be prepared to refer patients to a physician when symptoms exceed a clinic's capabilities. The organization also suggests that clinics use electronic health records that are compatible with AAFP-recommended systems, so they can easily communicate with the patient's primary care physician.
"Rather than expending energy in an ultimately unsuccessful attempt to 'stop' the retail clinic model, the goal at the national and chapter level should be to provide accurate information, to promote family medicine as the 'medical home,' and to try to ensure that clinics operate according to AAFP's desired attributes," AAFP Board Chair Mary Frank, MD, wrote in a memo.
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2006/01/30/bibf0130.htm.
