When you think of healthcare innovation, you may think of artificial intelligence (AI)-powered medical devices that can diagnose diseases quicker than a doctor or devices that can regenerate bone after surgery.

But if you ask Kyu Rhee, president and CEO of the National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC), the “most innovative part” of the healthcare system is one that’s already been around for 60 years: community health centers (CHCs).

Established in 1965 as part of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s War on Poverty, CHCs provide primary healthcare services including chronic disease management, cancer screening, dentistry, behavioral health, and more to patients regardless of whether they can pay or are insured.

Today, CHCs treat nearly 1 in 10 people across the US. As head of NACHC, which represents the roughly 1,500 CHCs across the US, Rhee has big plans to expand that number to 1 in 3.

“I do believe when you look at the broader system, there’s no better model of primary care,” Rhee said. “Our model is very focused on those communities that need us the most, and in many ways, it’s defined by people who are low income or poor.”

See the full profile here.—MA

Ken Bertini, pet medication compounding specialist at Sear’s Pharmacy in Oak Park just outside Chicago, has worked in retail pharmacy since 1965. He spent most of his career at Segreti Pharmacy, also in Oak Park, but moved to Sears after Segreti closed this January due to rising rents.

When he was starting out, Bertini wrote labels on a typewriter. Now, he not only uses a computer for that work but also took up new skills to stay strong in the evolving industry, including compounding, or making tailored medications for patients and pets.

“There’s not too many pharmacists around as long as I’ve been around,” Bertini said. “I remember way back when—when things were profitable, things were fun in the pharmacy—but now it’s very stressful. You don’t turn out numbers, you’re not going to survive.”

The pharmacy industry has grown significantly in recent years, up from about $317.2 billion in 2000 to nearly $1.7 trillion in 2024. But a study last year showed 1 in 3 retail pharmacies closed between 2010 and 2021, suggesting there’s increasing pressure to compete with the big names like CVS, Walmart, and Walgreens.

Healthcare Brew spoke with Bertini and Jim Schniepp, clinical pharmacy specialist at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago and pharmacist for 40 years, about how the industry has changed.

Here’s how the industry has changed in the last 25 years here.—CM

Fool one healthcare facility, shame on you. Fool 40 of them? There…might be a bigger problem at play.

Maryland resident Thomasina Amponsah pleaded guilty to working as a nurse at not one, not two, but 40+ facilities across Maryland despite never having a nursing license, according to an Aug. 14 release from the US Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland.

Fraudulent nurses have been arrested in several states over the last year, from Pennsylvania to Florida, involving everything from stolen identities to fake degrees. People have also impersonated doctors and other professionals.

It’s a rare but avoidable mistake that puts patients’ lives and a healthcare facility’s reputation at risk, Jennifer Mensik Kennedy, president of trade organization the American Nurses Association, told us.

“When there are individuals who impersonate nurses, that breaks people’s trust. So it is very important to us to make sure the processes to ensure that these things don’t happen are strong,” Mensik Kennedy said.

The Maryland Board of Nursing “will continue to investigate and take appropriate action” against anyone caught misrepresenting themselves, Maryland Department of Health spokesperson David McCallister told us.

Learn more about the fraudulent nurse issue here.—CC