Convenient care clinics: models and characteristics

Convenient Care Clinics

How do Convenient Care Clinics (CCC) fit into the hierarchy of health care delivery systems?

With the exorbitant costs of modernized health care delivery coming to the forefront of the national debate, and the continued effects of a prolonged economic recession restricting the options of countless Americans, the role of Convenient Care Clinics (CCCs) has significantly expanded during the last decade. As opposed to a full-scale hospital or comprehensive medical facility, CCC's are typically small practices located in strip malls and shopping centers, serving local communities by treating uncomplicated or minor illnesses, tending to basic injuries, and providing preventative health care services. While CCCs represent level of competition to major hospitals and other large-scale health care providers, by enabling patients to obtain medication and treatment without visiting the emergency room, in all actuality CCCs are an integral component of the nation's evolving hierarchy of health care delivery systems. It has been observed that the vast majority of "convenient care clinic companies and Convenient Care Association (CCA) policies support the 'medical home' concept, and require that patients be referred to other providers for comprehensive care and for services not included in the clinic 'menu'" (Wynter & Leifer, 2008), which means that CCCs actively work to direct patients in need to the most appropriate health care provider available.

What are the benefits/disadvantages of CCC to existing healthcare organizations and local health providers? Outline both advantages and disadvantages.

The emergence of CCCs across America has proven to be a double-edged sword for traditional health care providers who previously held a monopolistic status as the only legitimate outlet to seek diagnostic services, the administration of pharmaceuticals, and other health care services. As the pricing structure put in place by major hospitals, and the medical insurance companies they work closely in tandem with, has continued to escalate unabated for decades, ordinary Americans with limited financial means have begun to view CCCs as a source of salvation (Schmit, 2006). With the costs of seeking a simple medical checkup or physical now reaching the point of being prohibitive, the high quality health care services offered on-site by registered nurses and nurse practitioners have become a vital resource for struggling families. It must be noted, however, that despite the clear advantages offered by CCCs "some medical groups opposed the formation of the CCCs, basing their objection on the fear that patients would not receive quality care or get integrated health care, and that NPs were not qualified or suited to work in an independent setting" (Turton et al., 2010). While the loss of patient intake that major medical centers fear will result from CCCs is a legitimate concern, in reality "many physicians across the nation have partnered with CCCs in providing a collaboration and referral network system for patients that come to the clinics" (Turton et al., 2010). Like any other advancement within the medical care industry, the role of CCCs will ultimately be determined by patients who desperately need the services offered there, and it remains in the best interest of large hospitals and private practices to foster a true sense of cooperation and camaraderie with nearby CCCs and the health care professionals working within them.