Walgreens Launches Site for its Outcomes Research Studies

Walgreens has launched the Walgreens Center for Health and Wellbeing Research, a website that will serve as a library of its outcomes studies. The studies include research on access to care and patient experience, adherence and clinical outcomes, digital health and member engagement, health care costs, HIV and specialty pharmacy, and vaccinations.

The site will feature summaries of each study or report, and links and original documents that are related to them. The studies include reports, journal articles, and posters from scientific and industry conferences. There are currently more than 50 studies that have been completed over the past six years.

Walgreens collaborated on the research with several academic partners, including Johns Hopkins Medicine and the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health; the Scripps Translational Science Institute; the University of California, San Francisco, School of Pharmacy; and the University of Chicago Medicine. The institutions provide guidance, expertise, and insights that contribute to the chain’s outcomes research agenda, according to a company statement.

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The website is for both consumers and health-care professionals. “All pharmacists can learn from Walgreens’ experience and best practices at delivering pharmacy services that enhance patient care and improve clinical outcomes. Our peer-reviewed evidence can influence policy and is intended to support an expanded role of pharmacy in the larger health-care ecosystem,” said Harry Leider, MD, MBA, FACPE, Chief Medical Officer and Group Vice President, Walgreens.

Customers will also find the site useful. “Patients can learn about a broad range of pharmacy services, including digital tools and clinical programs, that can help them stay adherent to treatments, avoid vaccine-preventable diseases, and increase their access to care,” Leider said. “Our customers will see that Walgreens is collaborating with highly respected academic institutions to evaluate our programs and services that support the triple aim: improving patient experience, improving population health, and reducing health-care costs.”

The Walgreens Center for Health & Wellbeing Research is the work of more than 25 Walgreens health services researchers, clinicians, statisticians, public health practitioners, actuaries, and data scientists. Studies that are highlighted on the side include outcomes research into adherence issues, chronic conditions, and the value of what pharmacists do.