Walgreens: Good Health Isn’t Expensive

Okay, wait–that’s not totally true.

Have you seen the price of organic broccoli lately?!

Let me re-phrase that: good health doesn’t have to be expensive. At least, preventative care doesn’t have to be. So it always amazes me when I think about how unhealthy of a society we are.

And I think part of the problem is that people don’t realize they have other options to traditional healthcare.

We think the process is:  find a job, get health insurance, find a primary care physician, and then pay a $25 co-pay to see that primary care physician.

But health care is changing.

Or haven’t you noticed?

And it’s getting less expensive and more accessible to get the preventative care and screenings that we need in order to stay healthy.

So today, I had a chance to visit a Walgreens Healthcare Clinic in Washington, DC.

Honestly, I just wanted to go check it out (see my Google+ album of pics). I’d never been to one and wanted to see what kind of services they offered.

But I ended up getting my blood pressure checked and I got a body fat analysis!

Thanks, Walgreens, for confirming that I’m fat 🙂

When I strolled into the Walgreen’s Healthcare Clinic with my kids, I remembered that I had recently been to a G.I (gastro doc) for some weird indigestion pain, and when they’d taken my blood pressure, it was 130/90.

I was a little concerned (isn’t “normal” 120/80??), but didn’t really raise the question to the G.I. So I thought this would be a great opportunity to see if the Walgreens Healthcare Clinic could test me again.

What I liked about the experience is that they didn’t just have one of those blood pressure cuffs for you to walk over and self-diagnose your own self with high blood pressure.

Nope–I actually had to fill out a short one-pager, and then the pharmacist on-call took me into a side room where he used a traditional blood pressure cuff.

The result?

124/82.

He said it was normal, but that if I was really concerned, I could come back every month and have it checked.

Cost?

Nada.

What was so valuable was that for no money, I had a healthcare professional right at my fingertips, to answer any questions I had about my test result.

It really doesn’t get any easier (or cheaper!) than that.

I was curious about other services they offered, so he pointed me to some info (and their website), and I found a host of other things they could do on-site:

• Vaccines
• Cholesterol, blood glucose, and A1C testing
• School & sports physicals
• Treatment for: pink eye, allergies, joint pain, etc. Click for more info
• Minor injuries (sprains, burns, minor cuts, etc)
• Skin conditions (acne, skin infections, bites, etc.)
• Monitoring and managing on-going conditions (diabetes, high blood pressure, asthma, etc.)
• Medications and treatments
• Body fat composition analysis

Click for more info on what Walgreen’s Healthcare Clinics offer.

Um…..wait–body fat composition??

Okay, I’m game! I’ve been dying to know how “fat” or “lean” I am, and to know that I could pay just $15 to accurately find out, I was curious.

The good news is that my 5’10” and 172 pound frame has a normal Body Mass Index (BMI), and my muscle mass was 29.4%, which was normal, too.

The bad news is that my 33.4% body fat was juuuuust over the threshold of a normal for a woman of my age (35 years).

Thankfully, my visceral fat level of 5% was below 9%, so it was normal, as well (the fat surrounding your inner organs).

But I guess this chick needs to start lifting weights and taking Weight Watchers a little more seriously, huh?

Kudos!

Here are the things that are oh-so-right with the Walgreens Healthcare Clinic and why I would seriously considering going back again:

1. Inexpensive – The fact that I can get blood tests for $35 and under?? Super affordable, especially for people that don’t have insurance or can’t afford deductibles.

2. Convenient – Check ahead of time to see if there’s a wait in line before you go. No appointments needed. They’re open longer than regular docs. Great for new people moving in the area that don’t yet have a Primary Care Physician, too.

2. Super Fast – My visit only took about 30 minutes!

Improvements and Suggestions

There are a few things I would love to see them make improvements on:

1. Kid-friendly spaces – Waiting with children is torturous, no matter where you go. Having something to keep kids occupied is necessary so Mommy can focus. Maybe a kid movie on a couple monitors?

2. One check-in form – For each procedure I had done, I had to complete a separate one-pager. I would have preferred not having to write my personal info twice.

3. More locations – I’m not sure how many Walgreens have Health Clinics in them, but here in Maryland the closest are two in Washington, DC.  I would love to see more Walgreens expand with these services!

If you’ve ever thought about wanting affordable, convenient healthcare options for your family, seriously consider stopping by your closest Walgreens Healthcare Clinic to check out their services (find a Healthcare Clinic near you).

I can guarantee you won’t be disappointed 🙂

For more information on Walgreens Healthcare Clinic, find them on Twitter and on Facebook. #HealthcareClinic