SSM Health Care-St. Louis and Walgreens to Collaborate for Improved Access to Coordinated Care

SSM Health Care–St. Louis and Healthcare Clinic at select Walgreens (NYSE: WAG) (Nasdaq: WAG) will launch a collaboration in January 2014 that will improve access to care and increase care coordination for patients.

With the collaboration, patients who currently see an SSM Health Care primary care physician and visit a Healthcare Clinic at select Walgreens in the St. Louis region will benefit from enhanced information sharing between the two organizations. With patient consent, Healthcare Clinic nurse practitioners will be able to access information, such as allergies and medications, through sharing of an electronic health record going live later in 2014. SSM Health Care physicians will receive their patient’s discharge reports through this information sharing platform, so they are aware of the clinic visit and can provide any necessary follow-up care.

Healthcare Clinics are professional walk-in health centers located in more than 400 Walgreens drug stores across the country. Clinics are open seven days a week, including evenings and weekends, giving patients the option to access a variety of health care services at their convenience and without an appointment.

“SSM Health Care believes in building relationships with physicians and other providers that enhance our ability to improve our community’s health,” said Shane Peng, MD, interim president of physician and ambulatory services, SSM Health Care. “Our affiliation with Healthcare Clinic at select Walgreens will improve patient access to coordinated, affordable, quality care.”

SSM Health Care and Walgreens believe everyone should have a medical home. Patients who use Healthcare Clinic and do not have a medical home will receive help finding one and establishing a relationship. SSM Health Care also has more than 2,500 staff physicians, including more than 100 primary care providers, who can manage care over time for people with chronic illnesses. The collaboration will give SSM Health Care physicians another treatment option to offer their patients for non-emergent and after-hours care that maintains coordination of care between providers.

“Given the challenges facing today’s health care system, Healthcare Clinic at select Walgreens is ideally positioned to provide greater patient access to quality, convenient and affordable care,” said Alan E. London, chief medical officer, Consumer Solutions Group, Walgreens. “The collaboration with SSM Health Care aims to improve coordination of care for patients throughout the St. Louis community, and ultimately help them get, stay and live well.”

“This innovative collaboration with Walgreens enables SSM Health Care to expand our reach in the communities we serve,” said Gaurov Dayal, MD, president – health care delivery, finance & integration/executive vice president of SSM Health Care. “Health care across this country is undergoing significant transformation, and working in partnership with other likeminded organizations such as Walgreens is a critical element to becoming a leading provider of population-based health services.”

The collaboration will initially start at the following Healthcare Clinic at select Walgreens locations in Missouri:

    
      
        
          • 2920 Highway K, O’Fallon
        
        
           
        
        
          • 441 N. Kirkwood Rd., Kirkwood
        
      
      
        
          • 16105 Manchester Rd., Ellisville
        
        
        
        
          • 1000 Crossroads Pl., High Ridge
        
      
      
        
          • 12098 Lusher Rd., St. Louis
        
        
        
        
          • 1993 Wentzville Parkway, Wentzville
        
      
      
        
          • 3937 Vogel Rd., Arnold
        
        
        
        
          • 7199 Natural Bridge Rd., St. Louis
        
      
      
        
          • 2310 S. Old Highway 94, St. Charles
        
        
        
        
          • 8571 Watson Rd., Webster Groves
        
      
      
        
          • 920 N. Main St., O’Fallon
        
        
        
        
          • 917 Chesterfield Parkway East, Chesterfield
        
      
      
        
        
        
        
        
           
        
      
    
    

About Walgreens

As the nation's largest drugstore chain with fiscal 2013 sales of $72 billion, Walgreens (www.walgreens.com) vision is to be the first choice in health and daily living for everyone in America, and beyond. Each day, Walgreens provides more than 6 million customers the most convenient, multichannel access to consumer goods and services and trusted, cost-effective pharmacy, health and wellness services and advice in communities across America. Walgreens scope of pharmacy services includes retail, specialty, infusion, medical facility and mail service, along with respiratory services. These services improve health outcomes and lower costs for payers including employers, managed care organizations, health systems, pharmacy benefit managers and the public sector. The company operates 8,131 drugstores in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Take Care Health Systems is a Walgreens subsidiary that is the largest and most comprehensive manager of worksite health and wellness centers and in-store convenient care clinics, with more than 750 locations throughout the country.

About SSM Health Care

SSM Health Care (www.ssmhc.com) is a Catholic, not-for-profit health system serving the comprehensive health needs of communities across the Midwest through one of the largest integrated delivery systems in the nation.

With care delivery sites in Illinois, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Wisconsin, SSM includes 18 hospitals, more than 60 outpatient care sites, a pharmacy benefit company, an insurance plan, two nursing homes, comprehensive home care and hospice services, a technology company, and an Accountable Care Organization. With more than 1,300 employed physicians and nearly 30,000 employees in four states, SSM is one of the largest employers in every community it serves. An early adopter of the electronic health record (EHR), SSM is a national leader for the depth of its EHR integration. The addition of Dean Health System in 2013 brings the number of physician visits across SSM Health Care to 4 million annually.

Founded in 1872 by five Catholic sisters, SSM Health Care is strongly rooted in its faith-based mission and values. The system is committed to providing exceptional health care services and to finding ways to promote good health among people in the communities it serves. It was the first health care organization to receive the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, the nation’s highest award for quality.

SSM Health Care Contact:Steve Van Dinter, (314) [e-mail] Contact:Markeisha Marshall, [phone]http://news.walgreens.com