September 12, 2007

Letters to the Editor
Wall Street Journal

To the Editor:

Dr. Brewer made a good point about retail health clinics being less expensive than emergency rooms in his Sept. 11 column, but he forgot to mention that for more than two decades, health experts and insurers have stressed the importance and effectiveness of a “medical home” – a place where patients have a personal physician who oversees and coordinates their care.

A long term patient-doctor relationship is the optimal scenario.  While retail health clinics claim they will only see minor illnesses, doctors often use this type of visit for diagnoses, treatment and counseling regarding other medical problems.  Physicians are also better trained to differentiate between an apparent minor illness and a more serious medical problem.

Doctors aren’t trying to push for “such strict regulation of clinics that they’ll be hard to set up or operate profitably.”  Regulation of retail health clinics is needed to ensure both public safety and comprehensive patient care.  For example, would you feel comfortable buying produce from a stand adjacent to a clinic serving patients with respiratory infections?  We’ve heard reports of scenarios such as this.

In addition, regulation of retail health clinics is needed to make sure they do more than simply refer a patient to a community doctor.  Clinics must alert a patient’s designated doctor about visits and treatment outcomes.  We don’t want missing information in a patient’s medical chart that could later affect treatment of an ailment.

Patients, your best choice is to establish a relationship with a physician who meets your needs and your schedule.  Then you can be sure that your health is the main focus, not the well-being of the retail industry’s bottom line.

Sincerely,

Rodney C. Osborn, M.D.
President
Illinois State Medical Society 

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