Plaza Urgent Care Center

5 billion dollars by 2014 estimates (Creswell, 2014). The industry has grown big and has its own association called the Urgent Care Association of America (UCAOA). UCAOA require urgent care centers to admit walk-in patients all through business hours, have licensed physicians, open all days of the week, follow ethical and regulatory principles, have several exam rooms, and have open communication channels with local hospitals in case of serious emergencies. A group of investors wants to open an urgent care center called the Plaza Urgent Care Center in the city of Los Angeles, California. The investors have selected me as the strategy officer to analyze the market. Currently, there are about 26 urgent care centers in Los Angeles. Therefore, Plaza Urgent Care Center will be entering a market that is already swarmed by competitor forces.

Vermont Urgent Care is one of the centers that Plaza Urgent Care Center will have to fight to dislodge from the market. At Vermont Urgent Care, patients can view their health records from their iPhones and computers. This ease of access makes it easier for patients to monitor their progress and schedule visits to the physicians appropriately. Prior to the opening of the HealthCare Partners’ facility, Reliant Urgent Care opened in February the same year at West Century Boulevard in the Gateway Los Angeles Business District (Gateway, 2018). That is two facilities opening in a span of six months. If the current trend continues, it means that new urgent care facilities will be opened bi-annually and this would greatly diminish the customer pool for Plaza Urgent Care Center, as they will have to share with the new entrants.

The rapid growth of technology in many fields such as transportation, retail, financial services, hospitality and travel could also pose a challenge for Plaza Urgent Care Center. The healthcare industry remains largely untouched by the behemoth technology companies such as Apple, Amazon, Google, Microsoft, and even Uber. Despite this, the web-based services could still eat up some share of the potential customers for Plaza Urgent Care Center. Another substitution threat for Plaza Urgent Care Center is retail clinics. These clinics are located in drugstores and supermarkets and they provide almost similar services to urgent care centers (Ashwood et. al. Additionally, they have an almost similar pricing to that of urgent care centers and patients could easily seek their services. By the time an equipment needs replacement, many years shall have passed and Plaza Urgent Care Center will have obtained value for money spent.

Consequently, the cheap cost of supply will ensure that Plaza Urgent Care Center will enjoy good profit margins. However, some drugs and equipment have patents and their suppliers could hold the company ransom by charging high prices. Some of this equipment requires specialized skills to operate and this costs a lot of money. For instance, it would be difficult and expensive for Plaza Urgent Care Center to switch from one supplier of cardiac imaging equipment to another. Many such facilities and hospitals could provide the same services. Another factor to consider is that the clients lack the power to produce the services offered by urgent care centers by themselves. Consequently, this powerlessness of the clients will act as a safety net for Plaza Urgent Care Center in ensuring a constant supply of customers for their services.

In addition, the urgency of health care services will also ensure that the clients’ bargaining power is controlled. Usually, people seek medical services at the nearest facility because of the urgency of emergency health care and services. M. , Reid, R. O. , Weber, E. , & Mehrotra, A. Cresswell, J. Race Is On to Profit From Rise of Urgent Care. The New York Times. Accessed 1 November 2018, from https://www. nytimes. , & O’Riordan, J. Health care on demand: four telehealth priorities for 2016: expanding telehealth opportunities via email, video, and other technologies can improve patient satisfaction and convenience, while ensuring high-quality care is delivered at lower costs. Healthcare Financial Management, 70(1), 42-52. Medical Construction & Design. HealthCare Partners Open New Medical Facility, Urgent Care Clinic in Downtown Los Angeles.