Posted: 8/19/2008
Two Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing (JHUSON) Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) students received Johnson & Johnson scholarships to attend the inaugural Retail Clinician Education Congress in Orlando, FL, August 11-13. Stephanie Chen and Virginia Remley were two of only 15 representatives nationwide selected to attend this first-ever conference for Retail Health Clinicians.
According to the Academy of American Family Physicians, retail clinics are one of the newer and more profound trends within the American health care system. These clinics, found throughout metropolitan areas at large retail outlets such as CVS, Target, and Wal-Mart, offer a convenient and cheaper alternative to traditional family practitioners. These clinics often treat common illnesses from ear infections to sprained ankles.
The congress in Orlando featured experts in the medical profession, addressing a variety of issues linked with retail health, including treatment of common illnesses, detecting early symptoms of diabetes and cardiovascular disease, and the fundamentals of patient billing and coding.
“I’m interested in retail health because it allows more people to access health care,” Chen said. “Retail health is also a great way to [connect] people to state or federal health programs that they might not know about.”
Remley was excited to learn more about this new area of health care, and is looking forward to networking with fellow students, nurse practitioners, and retail clinic executives at the congress.
Both Chen and Remley are stellar students and were chosen for their outstanding academic record, according to JHUSON associate professor Julie Stanik-Hutt, PhD, ACNP, CCNS. “In addition to completing the MSN/FNP [program] they are also completing a dual major in community health and masters in Public Health from the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health,” Stanik-Hutt said.
The Johnson & Johnson scholarship covered up to $750.00 in traveling expenses and provided accommodations in Orlando.