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While Walmart is increasingly interested in primary care, the retail giant wants to ensure that qualified health staff will play key roles in its 20 clinics.
Earlier this month, the world's largest retailer unveiled its new clinic called Walmart Health in Dallas, Georgia, which provides patients with access to low-cost primary health care, including mental health issues. .
Walmart announced Tuesday that its 1.5 million associates would be able to claim $ 1 per day through Walmart's education benefits program, a bachelor's degree and two career degrees in health-related fields. .
The new diploma and certificate programs will provide Walmart employees with a path to higher paying careers in the growing health sector, said Walmart executives. The addition of health care education to the Live Live U university offering is also part of the evolution of the retailer's health and wellness strategy, they said.
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The health and wellness courses include career diploma programs for Penn Foster's pharmacy technicians and opticians and seven undergraduate degrees in health sciences, health and well-being and management / care administration. offered by Purdue University Global, Southern New Hampshire University, Bellevue University and Wilmington University.
The training program will enable trained employees to perform critical health care functions in Walmart and Sam's Club, which includes more than 5,000 retail pharmacies, 3,000 vision centers and 400 hearing centers, the retailer said in a statement. The skilled workforce will help the retailer make quality health care more affordable and accessible to the customers of the communities it serves.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the number of jobs in the health sector is expected to increase by 14% from 2018 to 2028, or 1.9 million new jobs.
"Our presence in thousands of communities provides us with a unique opportunity to provide millions of people with access to affordable health care. For this, we need qualified associates, "said Thomas Van Gilder, Walmart's medical manager, during a press call. On Monday. "As our health and wellness strategy and offerings continue to evolve, Live Better U will play a vital role in preparing our employees across the country for future job opportunities in the sector. growing health care.
Walmart currently operates 19 care clinics in Georgia, South Carolina and Texas that provide services such as primary care, illness and injury, chronic disease management, health and wellness checks, laboratory tests and vaccination. The new Walmart Health Center, which opened on Sept. 13, expanded its offerings such as counseling, dental care, optometry and hearing. The retailer works with local suppliers in Dallas to provide these services.
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Sean Slovenski, who has moved from Humana to Walmart, is leading the clinic's efforts, CNBC reported.
The focus on a health care education program suggests that Walmart is looking to go further in health care services. Van Gilder said the health credentials would help train employees to support Walmart's current clinical environments.
"We are collecting information and learning from our new site in Dallas, Georgia, and will refine this offer as we go along. We will see an expansion of opportunities here and elsewhere in primary care as well as in our pharmacy, vision centers and hearing centers, "said Van Gilder.
Currently, more than 13,500 Walmart employees are enrolled in Live Better U, which offers 50 programs. The retailer's goal is to have 50,000 employees enrolled over the next five years. The associates made over 36,000 credits worth $ 17.5 million in the first year of the program, according to Walmart.
Drew Holler, senior vice president of associate experience at Walmart, said that adding health care to the program's program was helping to remove financial barriers and access to the program. employee education, while aligning with the retailer's business strategy for health and well-being.
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"As we seek to improve the program, we think about what our employees are interested in, as well as the needs of the company, and then look at how we can combine these two to create opportunities and ensure that our business is designed for the future and serving our customers, "he said.
Walmart plans to add behavioral health training to the program's curriculum over the next year, Holler said, noting that employees' demand for health training is high. .
"Walmart's goal is to become the market leader by providing retail sector workers with access to careers in growth areas such as health." We do not know of any other American retailer offering a program that gives employees the opportunity to earn a degree in health care that can translate into higher paying work in the company or in a broader field, "said Holler.
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