Adding Healthcare To Retail Areas Is A Big Trend. But What About Adding Retail To Healthcare?

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The “retailization” of healthcare is a well-documented, recent and successful trend in the country’s medical delivery model.

But what about the “healthcare-ization” of retail?

Northwestern Memorial HealthCare, a 10-hospital system in Greater Chicago, has flipped the script by strategically incorporating innovative retail and food outlets in its healthcare facilities – and it’s working. Gina Weldy, the system’s senior VP, administration, discussed the strategy during a presentation at the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) RECon global convention held May 19-22 at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

“We often go into retail settings as a healthcare provider, but today I’m going to spend some time talking about how we actually deploy retail into our hospital pavilions and our medical office buildings,” Ms. Weldy told the capacity crowd during a presentation titled “How to Add Mixed-Use to a Healthcare Facility” during the Health & Wellness portion of the RECon event. “We have hospitals in the suburban markets and our core academic medical center is a block off Michigan Avenue (home to the well-known shopping district known as the Magnificent Mile), So, we by nature, have a unique retail opportunity, and I think we’ve finally learned how to leverage that.”

Ms. Weldy wasn’t talking about beefing up old-school hospital cafeterias or tired gift shops stocked only with balloons, flowers, cards and stuffed animals. No, she was talking about Northwestern Memorial’s success with bringing in hip, new and attractive restaurant operators and retailers – 36 different lessees in all – into its hospitals and outpatient pavilion settings, with a big focus on Chicago-area food and beverage operations at its massive, main hospital campus just a block off Michigan Avenue near the Streeterville neighborhood just north of the Chicago Loop.

Ever since the health system started working with a retail consultant in recent years to help it determine a retail strategy and to advise it in how to work with retailers and restaurant operators, sales have tripled in its retail spaces.

 

Source: HREI

Healthcare Is Entering A New Era Of Medical Office Development

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Meridian CEO John Pollock uses three words to describe the biggest trend in healthcare real estate at the moment: outpatient, outpatient, outpatient.

“As healthcare enters a new era, companies providing more outpatient services are on an upswing,” Pollock said. “We are in an era of tremendous growth in outpatient services,” Pollock wrote in an email to Bisnow. “In fact, we are so sure that outpatient services is where the industry is headed that this sector is nearly our singular focus at Meridian. I believe that as healthcare systems provide more care in a lower acuity setting, they will be able to provide a better experience for patients and at a lower price.”

Healthcare is undergoing a tremendous transformation. Healthcare is adjusting, evolving and growing rapidly as baby boomers continue to retire, millennials and Generation Z mature, and technology continues to shape the healthcare space.

“Now more than ever, bigger players and more money — especially from institutional investors — are entering the industry, CBRE First Vice President Angie Weber said. “These large providers have really taken over and the independent physician has become a thing of the past,”

Weber and Pollock are speaking at Bisnow’s National Healthcare West event June 20. Because of the growing population and the fact that most everyone at one time or another gets sick, healthcare is seen as a safe and resilient investment.

“It’s very safe and strong,” Weber said. “But it’s very expensive. The cost of managing staff and patients, tenant improvements and construction are very high.”

Outpatient demand is driving the development of medical office buildings greater than 150K SF, according to a JLL report released in May.

“No area of growth in healthcare is higher than outpatient services,” Pollock said.

There are currently 44 medical office developments larger than 150K SF under construction in the U.S., according to the report. The projects, estimated at $5.3B worth of investment, total nearly 11M SF and represent 22% of all medical office projects underway, the report states. Of the 44 projects, five are 450K SF or more, one is in the 350K SF to 449K SF range, eight are 250K SF to 349K SF, nine are 200K SF to 349K SF and 21 developments are 150K SF to 199K SF.

“This new trend is a function of the well-recognized growth in outpatient care with its focus on the patient experience and physician convenience with critical services and specialties housed under one roof, with the added goal of accountable care in a lower cost setting,” the report states. “The timing couldn’t be better given the surge in capital seeking investment opportunities in healthcare given the quality of tenancy and durability of medical office properties.”

Weber said the outpatient trend is being driven by a combination of demands from patients and medical providers. Many people, especially millennials, don’t like visiting a hospital for treatment.   Medical providers also find that it costs more to do certain medical procedures in a hospital than an outpatient setting.

“Along with preventive care options, medical providers are opening more specialized healthcare facilities, such as those that offer treatment for depression or post traumatic stress disorder and behavioral and mental health facilities,” Weber said.  “We’re going to see more of that,” she said. “I think you’re going to see these outpatient clinics in all shapes and sizes.”

 

Source: Bisnow

How ASCs Play A Role In Medical Office Transactions — 3 Insights From An Investment Director

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An influx of medical office investors is good news for ASC operators, according to John Nero, a director of the healthcare-focused investment banking firm Hammond Hanlon Camp.

Mr. Nero told Becker’s ASC Review how ASCs could be affected by medical office transactions — and play a role in them.

Question: What should ASC operators know about the medical office building market and activity right now?

John Nero: The medical office market continues to see an influx of new capital providers regularly, including private equity, institutional and offshore capital. These investors continue to create a market imbalance where capital outweighs the supply of quality medical office and ASC product, which bodes well for ASC operators that own their facilities and may want to evaluate opportunities to partner or sell in a favorable market environment.

Question: Every week, there are new transactions involving medical office buildings that have ASCs. Why do you think we see these kinds of facilities changing hands? Is it normal or noteworthy?

John Nero: Medical office buildings with ASCs tend to be viewed favorably, particularly when dealing with facilities located within certificate of need states, where the ability for the tenant to move the ASC is limited and the development of new competitive product is often restricted. While ASCs are specialized uses that cost a landlord more tenant improvement dollars compared with a more traditional medical office user, they also generate higher rents and have higher renewal probabilities upon lease expiration. Having an ASC in a multi-tenant building may also help attract physicians who perform cases to lease their office space there.

Question: What do medical office building operators prioritize when selecting a strategic capital partner?

John Nero: The top three factors medical office building operators look for when selecting a strategic capital partner are:

1. Alignment On Scale Expectations —This may be the most important element of creating a successful joint-venture partnership within any real estate sector, but in healthcare, it is particularly important. Some institutional capital providers can have unrealistic expectations of scale and capital deployment in this space. Most operating partners want to align with capital partners that are fairly well-educated on the nuances of the outpatient facilities sector, so that both sides understand what level of scale is realistic within the established investment strategy and defined timeframe.
2. Competitive Advantage — Every investor is seeking a competitive advantage, and this goes for both operators and capital providers. Operators are obviously looking for competitive economics in their joint-venture structures, whether it’s a favorable promote structure or eliminating requirements on crossing multiple investments within a program. They may also seek a sourcing advantage from their capital, as many private equity capital providers also have strategic investments in healthcare operating businesses (such as ASCs) that may surface off-market real estate opportunities.
3. Speed And Efficiency — Most medical office building operators see a tremendous amount of deals on a regular basis. As such, they need to be aligned with a capital partner that can respond quickly on whether or not to pursue opportunities in today’s competitive marketplace. The old mantra that “A fast ‘no’ is the next best answer to a ‘yes'” rings true here. Most new arrangements we’re advising on have some type of “three strikes” policy, whereby the capital partner can decline up to three opportunities that fit predefined criteria before the operator can pursue the transaction through another capital vehicle.

 

Source: Becker’s ASC Review