Loblaw Aims to Transform Canadian Health Care

Loblaw is giving Canadians free access to registered nurses and dieticians and the chance to earn loyalty rewards for reaching their health goals.

The grocery chain is launching what it calls the PC Health app, which provides users with personalized tools and recommendations based on their individual health needs and goals. 

Consumers can log on to the PC Health app to get health or nutrition guidance via live chat with a registered nurse or dietitian, see their personal health goals and work to meet them through daily activities outlined in a variety of health programs. Users can choose programs that are tailored to their own needs and interests, from maternal and family health or diet and nutrition programs, to mental health or anxiety management. Users will also have the opportunity to earn PC Optimum loyalty points by completing daily goals and activities.

“We exist to help Canadians live their lives as well as they can. We know that access to care and understanding how to best navigate the healthcare system are two of the biggest challenges facing many of our customers,” said Jeff Leger, president, Shoppers Drug Mart. “The PC Health app combines the power of our robust healthcare network, extensive professional care services and our world-class loyalty program into a healthcare solution for Canadians, right at their fingertips."

The new app is available now for download in Atlantic Canada. Loblaw plans to expand nationally over the coming months while also adding features and functionality to the PC Health experience to include services such as virtual physician care and digital pharmacy. The app has a wide range of features including:

• Care navigators who are available to help guide users through the complex health care landscape to help find the support they are looking for, whether that means a healthcare provider such as a dentist or family doctor, or a nearby medical facility that's open late. Users can also connect for free to registered nurses and dietitians via virtual live chat to address pressing health and nutrition questions in real time. And in the coming months, users will also have access to real-time virtual care from pharmacists, family physicians and specialists, directly on the app.
• Free health programs built into the app that are designed to help users develop healthy habits by providing tips for living a healthier lifestyle. Educational content is combined with daily goals and simple lifestyle activities that, as they are completed, earn users PC Optimum points along the way.
• A marketplace where users will find a curated online health and wellness shop filled with products and services to help them manage their health and wellbeing. Users can earn PC Optimum points on select products and services purchased through the app.
• By completing a health profile on the app, each user receives personalized recommendations based on their own particular health needs or interests.

The new app is part of Loblaw’s larger strategy to provide more health-related services to its customers.

In September, Loblaw spent $75 million through its Shoppers Drug Mart Inc. subsidiary for a minority stake in telemedicine company Maple Corp., which helps connect people with doctors and medical specialists using a smartphone or computer.

The company, which in addition to the Shoppers Drug Mart chain operates pharmacies in its grocery stores, owns electronic medical records company QHR and virtual care service Medeo.

Loblaw Companies Ltd. operates 2,431 stores in Canada. The Brampton, Ontario-based company is No. 13 on Progressive Grocer’s 2020 PG 100 list of the top food retailers in North America.