NewYork-Presbyterian, Walgreens Partner on Telemedicine Initiative

NewYork-Presbyterian and Walgreens are collaborating to bring expanded access to NewYork-Presbyterian’s healthcare through new telemedicine services, the two organizations announced this week.

The services are now available through Walgreens digital properties and at self-service kiosks at select Duane Reade drugstores in New York. NewYork-Presbyterian is offering the telemedicine services as part of its NYP OnDemand suite of digital health services.

These kiosks, located in private rooms inside the stores, offer instant examination, diagnosis and treatment of non-life threatening illnesses and injuries through NYP OnDemand Urgent Care. With the touch of a button, patients can reach board-certified Weill Cornell Medicine emergency medicine physicians, who provide exams through an HD video-conference connection. At the end of the examination, if the physician writes a prescription, it can be instantly sent to the patient’s preferred pharmacy.

Pediatric emergency medicine physicians will also be available to provide care during more limited hours, officials said. And in addition to the in-store kiosks, Walgreens customers in the New York area using the Walgreens website can access NYP OnDemand Urgent Care to video chat with board-certified emergency medicine doctors.

Visit times are expected to take about 10 to 20 minutes but will vary depending on the patient’s individual needs. The urgent care service is designed to care for non-life threatening conditions, illnesses and injuries such as: sore throat, allergies, rash, pink eye, abdominal pain, asthma, cold or the flu, dizziness, fever, and sprains.

“We believe that telemedicine can play a critical role in connecting patients with providers,” Greg Orr, divisional vice president of digital health for Walgreens, said in a statement. “We can now help to bring awareness of services that are offered locally by trusted providers such as NewYork-Presbyterian. We are pleased that NewYork-Presbyterian will be the first local healthcare provider to collaborate with us on our evolving telehealth and digital strategy.”