The U.S. pharmacy market continues to grow, according to Fortune Business Insights, and is expected to reach an overall market size of $862 billion by 2028, anticipated growth of 55.8% from 2020. New pharmacies are opening, and others are looking to expand in order to manage anticipated demand. However, staffing levels continue to fall short, creating a gap when pharmacies are literally stretched beyond their capacity with no relief or obvious solution in sight.
Doing more with less
To close this gap, some pharmacies are turning to technologies designed to increase efficiency and elevate the role of pharmacists, meeting demand and providing a positive patient experience. Pharmacies can leverage technologies designed to streamline prescription fulfillment, everything from pill counting and inspection, to automated packaging. These centralized fulfillment solutions could allow pharmacists the time they need to provide more patient-facing care, including delivering immunizations, conducting point-of-care testing, providing consultations, and diagnosing and treating patients.
Understanding your unique needs – semi-automated vs. fully automated
Pharmacy fulfillment solutions are not one size fits all. It’s important to understand the various centralized pharmacy fulfillment options and how they can be customized to best suit your unique needs.
When considering your technology options, take a step back and look at the needs of your pharmacy operation. We look at pharmacy automation options in the following ways:
- Centralized pharmacy fulfillment solutions are scalable and support pharmacies of any size from a centralized location.
- Community pharmacy fulfillment solutions are used in smaller pharmacies and include customizable configurations.
- Shared centralized fulfillment solutions allow multiple pharmacies to partner, accessing centralized fulfillment from a shared location.
Building blocks of technology decision-making
There is much to consider when selecting a pharmacy fulfillment solution including:
- Type of pharmacy business
- Prescription volume
- Available square footage
- Number of pharmacies needing technology support
- Type of services provided
At iA, we partner with customers to work these variables into ROI calculations to design and deliver a best-scenario solution that will continue to deliver value for years to come.
With central fulfillment operations brought together by iA’s NEXiA® Enterprise Software Suite into a nationally connected conveyance network, participants can realize the option that best suits the needs of the pharmacy, its staff, and the patients we all work together to serve. Centralized fulfillment leveraging automation is a key part of the solution toward the growing pharmacy industry of the future.
Ready to learn more? Download our white paper A Total View of Central Fulfillment Strategies.