Content about Health & Wellness

BENTONVILLE, Ark. — Sam's Club offered free oral care and health screening events at all 564 of its stores that have pharmacies, the club retailer said.

Sam's Club, owned by Walmart, said the events, which took place on Saturday, included non-invasive oral health questionnaires, dental tablets, glucose, total cholesterol, blood pressure, body-mass index and vision tests.

According to WebMD, oral health issues are often identifiers of diabetes and heart disease.

WASHINGTON — Nestlé USA today unveiled its new "Balance Your Plate with Nestlé" education campaign to help consumers build nutritious, convenient meals and offer a toolkit to healthcare professionals in guiding their customers to make healthier meals. The announcement was made during a luncheon presentation at the Consumer Federation of America's 36th Annual National Food Policy Conference.

NEW YORK — The University of Utah's College of Pharmacy has opened a new research organization designed to encourage collaboration and interaction, according to published reports.

The Salt Lake City-based Deseret News reported on the opening of the L.S. Skaggs Pharmacy Institute, a 150,000-sq.-ft. facility that includes open lab space.

LAS VEGAS — The Physician Assistant Review Panel has granted its approval for CME credit for physician assistants at the upcoming 2013 Retail Clinician Education Congress.

The sixth annual RCEC conference, which is hosted by Drug Store News Group in conjunction with the Convenient Care Association, will be held May 14 to 16 at the Planet Hollywood Resort in Las Vegas. The three-day educational and networking forum is designed to meet the needs of the growing field of convenient care practitioners.

GREENWICH, Conn. — Homeostasis Labs was named "Best New Product" by retail buyers attending the ECRM Home Health Care conference last month for a new sugar-free line of dietary supplements formulated to boost health for people with diabetes. 

MIAMI — Seafood brand Bumble Bee Foods has hired Hispanic celebrity chef Doreen Colondres in order to connect with the growing Hispanic market in the United States, the company said Wednesday.

NEW YORK — Patients who use retail-based health clinics are satisfied with their visit, according to the findings of a new Kalorama Information report.

The healthcare market research publisher, which is a division of MarketResearch.com, has been covering retail clinics for six years and conducted a survey of U.S. adults to determine retail clinic use and satisfaction. According to the Retail Clinics: Consumer Attitudes Results of the 2013 Kalorama Survey, 91% of those surveyed who had used a retail clinic were either satisfied or very satisfied.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — A majority of Americans say chronic pain ranks far below drug addiction as a major health problem, according to a new poll.

NEW YORK — More Americans are looking for reviews and ratings to guide their healthcare decision-making as they spend more of their own money on health care, but they're not finding what they need, according to a new report by PwC.

TAMPA, Fla. — The National Association of Specialty Pharmacy has named James Smeeding its first executive director, the group said Tuesday. The announcement was made during its first Specialty Pharmacy Conference in San Diego, which drew more than 500 participants.

Smeeding is the founder of the University of Texas College of Pharmacy's Center for Pharmacoeconomic studies and has worked for a variety of companies and organizations, including the TPG National Payor Roundtable, the Jestarx Group, Digital Health Dialog and others.

NEW YORK — A desire to save money is driving younger and older adults to request cheaper drugs from their doctors, but it's also driving younger adults not to take their drugs as prescribed, according to a new study.

SAN ANTONIO — H-E-B on Monday announced that its annual H-E-B Slim Down Showdown presented by Dole awarded $18,000 on Saturday to three contestants who made the greatest gains in health improvement and fan engagement over a three-month period.