In this Issue

In the classic “Arabian Nights” tale of Aladdin and his magic lamp, the evil sorcerer who made Aladdin retrieve the lamp containing the genie attempts to get it back by tricking Aladdin’s wife into giving it to him by roaming through the streets offering to trade “new lamps for old.”


Drug Store News spoke with Category Management Association managing partner and director of best practices Gordon Wade.

DSN: What is the Category Management Association? What is its mission?


PHILADELPHIA — No matter the shape healthcare reform takes in the United States, the retail clinic industry will be a crucial cog. Today, healthcare reform means 33 million additional Americans with coverage, most likely split between Medicaid and low-cost providers. That will create a significant demand for cost-efficient solutions like retail clinics. 


In September, the Generic Pharmaceutical Association announced the appointment of Ralph Neas — former president and CEO of the National Coalition on Health Care — as its new president and CEO, replacing Kathleen Jaeger, who stepped down as president and CEO of the organization in May 2010. Drug Store News recently spoke with Neas about his plans and vision for the organization and the industry as a whole.


Bubble Bobble
The 2-liter Bobble jug is designed to replace water filtration pitchers that requently take up way too much space in the refrigerator.
Price: $29.99
WaterBobble.com
 


With more than half of women in the United States between the ages of 25 and 58 years battling some form of acne and the average age for acne patients on the rise, according to the American Academy of Dermatology, it is no surprise that sales of acne treatments have experienced an uptick at food, drug and mass. The sales trend is likely to continue as manufacturers continue to develop formulas to battle adult acne.


A phrase like “silent killer” sounds creepy enough on its own, but it’s an often-used one for a virus that, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, infects 1.3% to 1.9% of people in the United States.



One thing that was pretty clear in the research we conducted for the 2011 Retail Clinician Reader Survey is that an increasing number of retail-based health practitioners want the clinics they work for to expand the scope of services beyond acute care. Many readers said the one thing that would make them even more satisfied about the work they do is “moving beyond sick care,” as one reader noted, to more preventive/wellness-oriented services, including chronic disease management programs for diabetes, hypertension and more.