The University of Chicago Medical Center, located in an area considered a pharmacy desert, has transformed its pharmacy services to better serve its community. Faced with challenges ranging from low initial outpatient pharmacy volumes to civil unrest and a pandemic, the institution strategically implemented a central fill pharmacy and other innovative programs to increase efficiency, access, and affordability for patients.
In 2017, the University of Chicago started a central fill pharmacy but soon realized it wasn’t the right time. The outpatient pharmacy needed a rebuild. They focused on serving as the primary pharmacy for their employees and implemented a mail-order option.
In 2019, civil unrest, rioting and looting led to the closure of many local retail pharmacies.
“Patients didn’t have anywhere to go, so the University of Chicago stepped up to the plate to help them,” said Denise Scarpelli, Chief Pharmacy Officer. As other pharmacies shuttered their doors, prescriptions jumped from 600 to 1200 daily. And the team at the University of Chicago worked together to meet the need.
The increased demand continued into the COVID-19 pandemic, reaching peaks of 2000 prescriptions per day. This surge highlighted the need for a robust central fulfillment operation.
According to Nathan Lim, Executive Director of Pharmacy, they creatively relocated a small pharmacy to a much larger unused space in their sister hospital, sharing it with home infusion services. This allowed for a rapid expansion of pharmacy services without the typical delays that could be brought on through real estate and pharmacy licensing challenges and acquiring a new space.
With a centralized fulfillment center in place, the University of Chicago has expanded its services and reach. They strategically placed pharmacists in clinics throughout their network to enhance patient care and expand access. Currently, they see a 40% capture rate from these clinics and are focusing on clinics with the highest prescription volume to further improve this rate. The hospital pharmacy focuses on affordability and access, serving many Medicare/Medicaid patients and offering many alternative solutions tailored to meet patient medication needs.
The University of Chicago faced the unique challenge of the pandemic and decided to implement a new strategy rather than close their doors as many other providers had, because their community was relying on them. Utilizing central fulfillment allowed them to step up and rise to meet the needs of their community when they were needed most.
By implementing this strategy, the University of Chicago was able to provide their community with the following results:
- The central fill pharmacy currently fills 1200-1300 prescriptions per day, with a system capacity of 4,000 prescriptions, providing room for growth.
- In addition to the central fill, the outpatient pharmacy still fills about 800 to 1,000 prescriptions per day.
- Prescription volume has increased by approximately 800 prescriptions per day over the past year and continues to climb through new pharmacy initiatives and ongoing multi-disciplinary approach.
While the University of Chicago’s central fulfillment strategy has proven sustainable and efficient for the organization, it’s not the only factor driving their decisions. Their commitment to their patients and community remains paramount to them as pharmacy services are just one piece of the comprehensive, quality healthcare they aim to provide.
They continue to shape their services to their patients’ evolving needs including offering options like mail-order delivery, courier options or in-store pick-up.
The University of Chicago’s journey in the pharmacy space demonstrates the importance of a solid strategy that includes centralized fulfillment. By embracing this solution at the right time, they were able to meet the growing need of their community while also expanding their network.
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