Pharmacists like you are continually seeking ways to optimize their practices, improve patient care, and increase efficiency, which are key to both providing excellent service and maintaining a sustainable business. You might have heard of some ways to boost efficiency, but there are some tried and true ways to turn those spare minutes and seconds into a bigger margin. Here are 10 that were on display at the 2023 NCPA Annual Convention—and 10 you can take home with you.
AI is all the rage, but is it right for you? Ravi Patel, PharmD, thinks so. Patel teaches at the School of Pharmacy at the University of Pittsburgh, and he says there is incredible potential of artificial intelligence (AI) tools like ChatGPT in revolutionizing pharmacy practice and its impact on patient care, operational efficiency, and business growth. He says community pharmacies can adopt AI for lots of things—notably marketing on social media, where keywords are king, and making weekly or monthly newsletters for loyal patients a snap to compose. Later today at his session titled AI-Powered Pharmacy: Embracing Innovation for Better Patient Outcomes and Business Growth, he'll share how it's an efficiency that can save a couple of hours a week for you or your staff, which translates to more time to pour into revenue-producing work.
We've heard a lot about how to streamline workflows and invest in technology like apps or websites. Both of those suggestions to boost efficiency utilize data to identify bottlenecks and redundancies. They also help you automate repetitive tasks (along with a robust digital pharmacy management system for inventory, which can help you routinely monitor and adjust your stock levels to avoid overstocking or running out of essential medications).
But maybe you're not ready to make an investment in out-of-the-box software to improve workflows. Maybe you're looking for a more strategic and philosophical framework first. In Saturday's session, An LTC Operations Deep Dive: Utilizing Six Sigma Methodologies to Decrease Waste and Improve Efficiencies," Paul Shelton, president, PharmaComplete Consulting Services, identified eight areas of what he calls "pharmacy waste" to do just that. Defects, overproduction, waiting, non-utilized talent, transportation, inventory, motion, and excess processing are all killers, he says, that might be easy to spot but really hard to change.
"From Disney to Tesla to Bank of America, companies all over the world have adopted Six Sigma process improvement methodologies to decrease waste and improve efficiencies in their businesses," he says, noting that if it's good enough for them, it's really good for pharmacies looking to create that edge to improve their margins.
Want to know what else those big companies do? Staff training. If you invest the time in continuous staff training on a monthly or quarterly basis, you can often uncover inefficiencies that are making it harder for your pharmacy to reach its revenue goals (or be comfortably profitable). Downstream, well-trained team members can handle tasks more efficiently, reducing errors and the need for rework. Cross-training can also make your team more versatile and adaptable. Speaking of training, patient education and adherence counseling are ways to help them help you. After all, patients who understand their medications are more likely to stick to their treatment plans, reducing complications and the need for additional interventions. In the very same ballpark as patient education is prioritizing med sync—encouraging patients to enroll, aligning prescription refills, reducing the workload, and making it easier to manage those pills and treatments.
Of course, what modern pharmacy hasn't considered exploring telepharmacy options to expand their reach and provide services to remote patients? Telepharmacy can enhance efficiency by allowing pharmacists to serve more patients without the need for physical expansion. Related is exploring clinical services like immunizations or medication therapy management that might be possible with your pharmacy's current physical footprint.
Integrating these seamlessly into your workflow can mean easily timing appointments and efficiently creating documentation that can enhance both patient care and your bottom line.
Regular process audits are great ways to periodically assess your pharmacy's processes and identify areas for improvement. Continuous improvement is key to long-term efficiency gains, they say, but sometimes that seems too nebulous and abstract. What does it all come down to in an everyday sense? In the end, says Brian Hose, PharmD, CEO of Epic Rx and owner of Sharpsburg Pharmacy, it all comes down to checklists. His convention session, Pharmacy Profitability Power-Up: Your Checklist to Unleashing Your Competitive Edge, at 9:30 a.m. today, will reveal the often-overlooked areas of his business that once held him back from staying competitive.
Whether it's negotiating contracts, looking at the cost of vials and labels, or maximizing profitability on clinical services, there are dollars hidden in plain sight. Sometimes you just have to sit down and make a list.
