Becker’s Healthcare Podcast Samuel Pueringer, MHA, Senior Director of Retail Health Operations at Hartford HealthCare
Nov 6, 2025
Samuel Pueringer, MHA, is the Senior Director of Retail Health Operations at Hartford HealthCare, where he drives innovative hospital strategies. He discusses the evolution of patient access via retail and virtual care, including pioneering care kiosks at airports. Samuel dives into the distinctions between in-person, hybrid, and virtual healthcare models, explaining how they meet patients where they are. He offers valuable advice for emerging healthcare leaders, emphasizing continuous learning and effective teamwork.
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Meeting Patients Where They Are
- Retail health is non-traditional delivery that meets patients where they are, like urgent care, virtual visits, or in-pharmacy sites.
- Samuel Pueringer emphasizes partnering and experimenting to match changing patient needs and desires.
Three Modes Of Retail Care
- Hartford HealthCare offers three gradations: traditional in-person, hybrid, and virtual on-demand care.
- Samuel Pueringer highlights hybrid care as faster, easier, and lower cost to set up than full in-person visits.
Airport Care Kiosks For Travelers
- Hartford HealthCare deployed HHC on-match care stations, including one at Bradley International Airport for travelers.
- The kiosks provide private, instrumented virtual visits and use daily cleaning plus UV disinfection after each use.