Walgreens transfers operations of 4 retail clinics to Florida's Sacred Heart Health System

DEERFIELD, Ill. – Walgreens and Sacred Heart Health System on Monday signed an agreement to have Sacred Heart operate and provide all clinical services at four retail health clinics to be located within Walgreens stores in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties.   

 

“With the changing needs of patients in today’s healthcare environment, forming deeper and more collaborative relationships with health systems is key,” said Pat Carroll, chief medical officer for Walgreens Healthcare Clinics.  “We continue to expand our relationships with established community health systems, like Sacred Heart, in efforts to enhance care coordination for our patients. We look forward to collaborating even more with Sacred Heart as they share our commitment to provide convenient access to high quality and affordable health care services.”



Two existing Walgreens Healthcare Clinics are planned to transition to Sacred Heart this spring at which time the clinics will become an extension of the Sacred Heart Medical Group.  Walgreens will continue to manage these Healthcare Clinic locations until that time. In addition, Sacred Heart plans to open two new retail clinics in other area Walgreens stores in the spring.  



All of the sites will be named Sacred Heart Clinic at Walgreens.



This new clinic agreement expands on an existing clinical collaboration and pharmacy relationship between Walgreens and Sacred Heart focused on enhanced communications to better coordinate care. Today’s agreement further improves care coordination by fully integrating the clinics into Sacred Heart Medical Group.  In addition, Walgreens operates an on-site pharmacy at Sacred Heart Hospital’s main campus, where Walgreens provides pharmacy services for Sacred Heart patients and employees.

 

“Our collaboration with Walgreens is an important step in Sacred Heart’s commitment to improve access to care and to improve the health of the communities we serve,” stated Susan Davis, president and CEO of Sacred Heart Health System.  “The convenience of Walgreens locations and its pharmacy services along with Sacred Heart’s personalized care and expertise, will advance our efforts to improve the health of our patients. We want to offer the most appropriate level of care to consumers when and where they need it.”

 

As part of the agreement, Walgreens and Sacred Heart will also form a collaborative council to share best practices and experiences that aim to improve patient care, quality and satisfaction, while reducing health care costs.



Sacred Heart plans to operate the Sacred Heart Clinic at Walgreens locations seven days a week, including evenings, giving patients the option to access a variety of health care services without an appointment. Services will be provided by board-certified nurse practitioners who provide care for common minor illnesses and injuries. Sacred Heart will continue to evaluate the possibility of new services in the future.

 

Sacred Heart serves seven counties along the Gulf Coast between Apalachicola, Fla. and Gulf Shores, Ala. The hub of the Sacred Heart system is its 566-bed Sacred Heart Hospital in Pensacola, Fla.