And unfortunately, Paul, I have to agree with you! It's what you find everywhere lately: there's rarely enough money or institutional support to do things the "right" way. 

But I still think this is an interesting angle to look at: so much money and effort is spent on market research. Those who sell products to the people know inside and out what motivates them, what will hook them in, and how to get them to buy something. They know all about the importance of the win-win situation. Right? So, even though our motives are not monetary, if we are trying to sell an idea or a behavior, we might learn something from them.

Here's a brilliant example: An organization called Partners in Health (PIH) is trying to make AIDS and tuberculosis medicines available to poor people around the world. They figured that if Coke and Pepsi can sell their products to poor people all over the world, they could use some of the same principles to help make the medicines available. So they are working with the Harvard Business School to develop a field of global distribution for health care.

So Rite Aid, while certainly financially motivated, did come up with an idea that could really help people if it is done well and given the institutional support (more staff to do the consultations, etc.) I think one key is for the business to team up with an organization which is devoted (maybe even mandated) to improving health. 

So who will sign on for Paul's idea, below?

I'd love to hear from pharmacy organizations. What kind of work can they do to improve and support an effort like Rite Aid's?

Julie

Julie McKinney
Discussion List Moderator
World Education/NCSALL
jmckinney at worlded.org


>>> <AboutDiabetes at aol.com> 01/18/08 12:02 PM >>>

Unfortunately, Julie, I have to agree with Mark. The already overworked  
retail pharmacists at Rite Aid would probably like to kill the Wharton  MBA-type 
product manager at corporate who thought this one up.
 
Rite Aid knows that the time to improve the process as much as possible is  
pre-launch. They have set their defined goals for this program and it will  
continue as long as it is achieving those goals...and not one minute  more. 
 
If HL people wanted to improve the process re this potentially useful  idea 
(especially for seniors and the cognitively impaired), the best way to do  it 
would be to monitor Rite Aids efforts (free market research), redesign a more  
practical, user-friendly approach if one is needed, and then look for an  
industry sponsor to help launch this "new and better" approach.
As they say in marketing, find "win-win" solutions and you are  half-way 
there.  
 
Paul Tracey
Learning About Diabetes, Inc.
_www.learningaboutdiabetes.org_ (http://www.learningaboutdiabetes.org)  



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