Editorial

摘要

Healthcare has failed to take a leadership role in delivery innovations that meet the needs of its customers, who place a premium on speed and convenience. Industry has adapted to this new environment, but healthcare has been slow to respond. Hospitals remain sprawling and formidable urban centers with adjacent parking garages, medical office buildings, and outpatient facilities built to meet providers' needs. For patients, navigating these behemoths is frustrating and time-consuming. "Retail medicine" may sound like an oxymoron to some, but to healthcare leaders it sounds like the new frontier in healthcare delivery. If healthcare is to better align with consumer expectations and meet the needs of more than 10 million people who gained insurance under the Affordable Care Act, its leaders must rethink delivery modalities. This issue of Frontiers explores the significance of retail medicine, its future, and the challenges and opportunities it presents to healthcare leaders.