Deerfield, Ill.-based Walgreens and Seattle-based Providence Health & Services announced Thursday a clinical collaboration to coordinate patient care through 25 new retail clinics in Oregon and Washington.
Providence Health will own and operate the clinics inside Walgreens stores. The integrated healthcare option, called Providence Express Care at Walgreens or Swedish Express Care at Walgreens, is a move intended to take retail care beyond urgent, episodic care to more coordinated health services. Swedish Health Services in an affiliate of Providence Health.
To start, three clinics will open in Portland and Seattle by 2016, and the company has further plans for expansion over the next two years. The clinics will operate seven days a week and offer walk-in and same-day scheduling options, as well as evening and weekend hours.
Representatives from both Walgreens and Providence will be on the governing council for the collaboration.
"This is a reflection of our efforts to develop deeper and more strategic relationships with our health system partners," Jeff Koziel, Walgreens group vice president for Healthcare Clinics, said in a statement. "Collaboration among providers is key in today's healthcare environment, to help ensure continuity of patient care and to provide greater convenience and access for patients. We look forward to working with Providence to expand the retail clinic footprint at Walgreens, and to help manage patients for both pharmacy and medical needs."
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