Home Care Supplies Easily Available
Author
Thomas Wiest
CEO, Aspirience Home Care
It’s not news to anyone that Walgreens, the general neighborhood pharmacy acquired OptionCare last year, making the 20-year-old division of Walgreen Corporation available nationwide in nearly every state.
Walgreens-OptionCare provides home care medical equipment and supplies for families referred by physicians, clinics, county healthcare workers, hospitals or walk-ins.
Their equipment includes respiratory and infusion equipment and services, wheelchairs, hospital beds, walkers, canes, lifts, crutches and custom orders.
I was talking with the General Manager of a local Minnesota Walgreens and he said eighty percent of their business is custom orders: everything from compression hose for circulatory problems to adaptive equipment for eating to custom bathroom accessories.
Some of the stores offer people an opportunity to try out equipment before acquiring it. Just like buying a car, take it for a test drive if you like it, buy it.
Essentially, a customer comes in and says, ‘I’m bringing mom home from the hospital and I don’t know what I need.’ They inquire as to what their home situation is, the caregiver they are working with and the status of mom’s needs.
Until a person is in that situation, you literally have no idea what you might need. Now things have changed for better when you need medical supplies accompanied with home care services.
What does this mean for the home care services world?
This is a great partnership in the making for us to be able to provide a reliable source for medical supplies with convenient locations at affordable prices. It’s a complimentary match for both of us.