By: Erin Wisdom
July 5th, 2009 - Looking for a hand exerciser? An EMT alert bracelet? How about some vitamin C tablets or a “Grey’s Anatomy”-trademarked scrub top?
And how about being able to get all of these in a one-stop shopping trip?
This is the idea behind Heartland Health’s new online store, located at www.heartland.thehospitalstore.com. The store offers items ranging from booster seats and bouncers for babies to exercise bands and barbells for workouts to books with “memory aerobics” for adults with dementia. Every order ships for $4.95.
“Health care retail’s a new idea for a lot of hospitals,” said Pat Dillon, Heartland’s retail director. “They’re just looking for ways to serve customers better beyond the hospital.”
Heartland is one of only about 10 hospitals working with the company that operates its store’s Web site, he added, also noting that some of the greatest benefits of the store are the availability it offers of products that can’t easily be found elsewhere, as well as a section featuring products recommended by Heartland physicians.
“It saves travel time, and doctors know patients are getting exactly what they need” when they direct them to the online store, Mr. Dillon said.
He added that some of the store’s most popular items so far are nutritional supplements, mineral-based cosmetics and nursery items. It also offers a gift registry for baby items, as well as a customizable newsletter. Users can list what health topics they’re interested in reading about, and the newsletter available when they log in will contain articles about only those.
“So many people are shopping online,” Mr. Dillon said, “so this is just another service to offer them.”
Erin Wisdom can be reached at ewisdom@npgco.com.
Paquin Healthcare, the nation’s leading specialist in healthcare-based retail, is an alliance of industry leading experts and resources created to assist hospitals in the identification and implementation of healthcare retail and online commerce strategies. The company’s core mission is to increase revenue opportunities and minimize risks for healthcare organizations. As Medicare reimbursement rates continue to be pressured downward and expenses rise, new sources for non-reimbursed revenues are becoming essential to the financial viability of hospitals.
More details at : http://www.paquinhealthcare.com
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