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STRATEGIC
IT
MANAGEMENT
How independent
pharmacy can leverage data to improve outcomes
By Todd Eury
(Editor’s Note:
this article first appeared in the May 2010 America’s Pharmacist,
official
publication of the National Community Pharmacists Association. Eury is executive
director of Pharmacy Technology Resource, Evans City, Pa. He can be reached at
(41) 735-4427 or
teury@pharmacytechnology.net.)
With
the unprecedented business challenges facing independent pharmacies today,
owners must be searching, planning, and implementing alternative strategies that
create efficiencies, increased productivity, and new profit opportunities.
Independent community pharmacy must accomplish more in any given day on the job
to create more opportunity for success, sustainability, and increased patient
services.
Managing your
pharmacy’s technology, automation, and processes are keys to optimal
effectiveness, and can have a significant impact on your store’s productivity
and profitability. The use of pharmacy automation is more than just medication
counting and packaging. Strategic planning and independent pharmacy’s adoption
of automation can affect the entire process, from receipt of a prescription
order to the actual dispensing of a finished product.
Before
talking about how leveraging information technology management can make a
significant impact to the success of your operation, let’s discuss the purpose
and selection of pharmacy technology.
Making
successful technology selections is a matter of intentionality. With all that’s
in the marketplace to choose from, you need to be armed with articulated
objectives. Far too many owners and operators move into the selection process
unprepared, and they walk away either confused, overwhelmed, or worst of all,
taken advantage of by vendors.
So how do you
go about making successful technology selections? Start with a stated business
goal. Ask yourself and your team, “What are we attempting to achieve for our
business? Where do we see ourselves three to five years from now?” The responses
to these questions will identify several facets of the business you’ll want to
consider.
·
Market share ¾
the number of customers or the size of marketplace you are targeting.
·
Offerings ¾
the menu of products and/or services you see yourself taking to market.
·
Geographical footprint ¾
the number and placement of physical locations you aspire to have. This may also
encompass virtual locations as the Internet and its applications become a larger
part of your business.
·
Functional capabilities ¾
the capacity to do more with less, and doing more than you thought possible
before.
·
Financial growth and profitability
¾
growing both the top line and the bottom line of your business.
Technology
plays a measurable role in each of these facets, but technology isn’t the goal;
instead it can be an enabling factor to achieve your goals.
STRATEGY
PURPOSES
A
well-articulated strategy is important. It sets the plan in place and lays out
the blueprint for your business. Without a guiding strategy, you’re no better
off than a random leaf on a stream going wherever the current takes you. In
other words, you’re not in control, and that most often results in failed
outcomes. Strategy places boundaries for intent, action, and measures.
People need
strategy to bind their efforts. Without a vision (strategy) people are confused.
Staff crave the security of known parameters to give them purpose and measured
affirmation. Good strategy attracts effective people. Your most valuable asset
is your staff, so don’t underestimate it while overestimating technology.
Process
(business and functional) sets a context for getting things done. Day in and day
out, the work performed by your business is accomplished through process.
Whether formalized or the stuff of historical activity, process is the science
of “doing,” which moves your business forward. By formalizing your processes,
you can better predict the outcomes of what your staff is doing. Technology is
no substitute for process; it’s simply an enabler through automation and
measurement. Consider the business challenges you hope to resolve before
selecting a technology. In other words, don’t choose a technology solution for a
loosely identified problem. “No prescription ought to be offered for an illness
undefined.” Know your business then choose your technology.
When
considering a technology solution, separate the “nice to haves” from the “have
to haves.” Far too many technology selections are made based on the nice to have
features of a product instead of the fundamental functionality businesses need
to have to succeed. Go into the selection process with a defined list of “have
to have” functions that automate your business processes, resulting in more and
better production output from your staff. Anything else will leave you
unsatisfied and frustrated.
When shopping
for technology, ask some straight questions of the vendors promoting their
products and services. Are they willing to share the risk of the selection by
structuring a deferred payment arrangement until the solution is proven? Will
they credit back a portion of the purchase if the offered solution doesn’t meet
documented expectations? Responses to such questions will tell you a lot about
the vendor. If they stand behind their offering, bounded by a responsible
contract, then you have a true technology partner. The devil is in the details
of the arrangement you make, and you also have to step forward with reasonable
responses, but the ultimate outcomes is well worth it. Your selection will be
safe because you are in it together.
Pharmacies
must take a look at their processes and use of their technologies and determine
where and how each pharmacy technician can be properly and effectively utilized
to create efficiencies. The overall combination of people, process, and
technology can create the best pharmacy operation as an interworking system. The
questions of “how each part of the equation so ‘the system’ can fit into and
support the overall mission of the pharmacy” is necessary to answer you every
pharmacy.
THE
PHARMACY SOFTWARE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM
Proactive
leadership has great influence on the success of the pharmacy. The variety and
approaches to pharmacy information systems make this area complex yet exciting.
Regardless of its size, an independent pharmacy that knows its information
system is pivotal to the operations and uses that data captured on a daily
basis, can become more profitable. Whether a business is dispensing 30
prescriptions per day or more than 1,000, benefits can be seen from modern open
database pharmacy software systems coupled with independent pharmacists who
understand the operational processes and workflow steps.
Some of the
more advanced systems are Windows-based and are designed to “think like
pharmacist.” There are key operational features that are intended to free up
prescription department personnel for other duties (most often associated with
patient care). The logic of the pharmacy system is in place to ensure patient
safety and lend support to the clinical overview of patients. The team can
ensure that processes are followed, while using the pharmacy system to help fill
prescriptions in a fast and safe manner while safeguarding profit margins.
Independent
pharmacist Heather Swaringen of Lewisville Drug Co., in Lewisville, N.C., knows
the benefit of a modern pharmacy software system. Previously, she worked for a
national chain and commented that its pharmacy system was antiquated and
unsophisticated. Her current pharmacy program layout makes her job easier. “Our
inventory and billing processes are seamless with the software compared to what
I remember while with a national chain for six years,” she says. “The
technology, combined with my experience, has given me about a 60 percent
productivity advantage with regard to prescription processing from start to
finish. From operations to production, the modern software is a huge advantage
for us.” Swaringen mentioned that she uses barcode technology heavily throughout
the day, too. “Using barcode in the process makes mundane data entry less
tedious and cuts down on data entry mistakes.
As an
independent pharmacist, Swaringen understands the importance of technologies
that help her work more efficiently. “With our software, it is possible to scan
the barcodes of prescriptions in the pickup bins to produce an exception report
for follow up via telephone.” Swaringen’s system also provides an electronic
signature capture and retrieval at the time of dispensing for HIPAA, third
party, accounts receivable, credit/debit cards, and controlled substance
purposes. There are many reputable pharmacy technology vendors available in the
marketplace. As discussed previously, it’s just a matter of doing smart shopping
and finding the right match for your needs.
SECURITY
AND INFRASTRUCTURE
The most
valuable asset within U.S. healthcare is its data. The criticality of patient
data drives pharmaceutical development, bounds insurance actuarial policies,
fills tomes of learning for all health care related education, and drives
strategic placement and development of health care related constructions. The
list goes on and on. Make no mistake, the U.S. health care industry of more than
$2.3 trillion is driven and bounded by patient data/information.
On the
downside, patient data is the most sensitive information about any given
individual. It reveals Social Security number, home address, insurance coverage,
health history, medication management, and sometimes, psychological and
behavioral life patterns and history. Any or all of this can be used harmfully
against a patient in myriad ways. Additionally, fraud on a massive scale can be
perpetrated using falsified identities for monetary gain and deeper intrusion
into various health care industry corporate organizations.
Prominent
national security analysis think tanks such as the Rand Corp. and the Brookings
Institute believe such fraud has direct implications to U. S. national security
via funding of terrorist activities and strategic misuse of data. There are
inexpensive services a pharmacy can employ to proactively monitor network usage,
perform security scans, and act as the pharmacy’s IT network guard dog.
A fundamental
approach to data and information protection involves personnel orientation,
performance accountability, measurable workflow process, and keen use of
technology across an organization.
RECONCILIATION AND PROFIT ANALYZING PHARMACY DATA
For those
independent pharmacies that excel more in the billing, reconciliation, and
financial reporting aspect of business, creating additional savings initiatives
through advanced business software services can provide better profit margins. A
proactive independent pharmacy can leverage its understanding of claims
reconciliation to explain the benefits of these profit optimizing systems.
Pharmacies can work with pharmacy-experienced analysts who can electronically
connect directly into the pharmacy system through a secure connection. They
diligently rebill erroneous transactions, adjust brand and generic pricing, and
make other adjustment to optimize future transactions. This can include
adjustment to AWP, billing errors, incorrectly priced drugs, and other data
issues that might have been missed by the adjudication team.
INNOVATIVE
TECHNOLOGY FOR COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGES
For
pharmacies to maximize their effectiveness and time spent to generate greater
profits, it’s necessary to understand and use advanced pharmacy technologies.
Independent pharmacies that are using various methods of workflow and automation
have an advantage over pharmacies that do not. Today’s independent pharmacy will
have to master a wider variety of business challenges, process understanding,
and workload technologies to provide service to modern patients who are
technologically more in tune. There is simply no alternative to a pharmacy
operation that employs automation, technology, and processes together that drive
a competitive advantage. All independent pharmacies should seek opportunities to
learn more about different types of technology and IT management to have a
better chance of sustaining success.
07/17/10
Brian Buck: Having Fun Being a Teacher
“Being
a faculty member at the College of Pharmacy is the most challenging job I’ve
ever had,” said Brian Buck, who was named the 2010 Teacher of the Year at
the University of Georgia College of Pharmacy. “As an academic pharmacist, I
must manage numerous teaching projects while maintaining a clinical service. As
for teaching, preparation can be quite demanding but I have found that actually
working in the classroom with the students is enjoyable and very rewarding.”
For Buck, teaching with
enthusiasm is important in becoming a successful academician. It’s the central
theme of his teaching philosophy. “If you’re enthused about teaching and
coaching learners, you will likely be more effective as a pharmacist,” said
Buck, whose main teaching duties involve third-year pharmacotherapy students and
pharmacy residents.
“A good teacher must be able to
use multiple teaching methods since different learners demand different styles,”
he explained.
As coordinator of the
pharmacotherapy curriculum, Buck has spent the last two years working with other
faculty to make the course more patient-focused, interactive and
learner-centered. Rather than listening to lectures, students spend their class
time discussing, assessing and preparing evidence-based treatment plans for
patients with a wide range of disease states with faculty specialists who act
more as coaches than lecturers. As students critically evaluate and apply
information, they begin to develop good critical thinking skills and good
clinical judgment, Buck said, “skills that all health professionals must possess
to provide effective direct patient care.”
Students seem to support his
approach in their class evaluations. “He is sincerely trying to enhance learning
and better prepare students for their future in pharmacy,” and “His passion for
teaching has positively influenced me as a student and broadened my training in
clinical pharmacy” are two endorsements he received from students for the
Teacher of the Year award. “He stayed faithful to a high level of teaching,”
read another endorsement, “because he demanded us to rise to the challenge
instead of making the class easier.”
Buck is no stranger to teaching
awards. In 2009, Buck became the recipient of the 2009 American Association
of Colleges of Pharmacy Innovations in Teaching Award for his involvement in
Dr. Catherine White’s elective course on providing pharmaceutical care in a
disaster environment. In 2008 he was named a Fellow of the American Society of
Health System Pharmacists for his accomplishments in pharmacy practice and
education, which included directing three ASHP-accredited residency programs.
As director of the program, he
was also instrumental in advancing the residency and implementing a teaching
certificate into the residency curriculum. The program provides residents and
residency preceptors an opportunity to participate in a structured,
peer-reviewed teaching program that will increase skills, confidence, and
enthusiasm for teaching others, he said. Earning the UGA Teaching Certificate
documents proficiency and assures that effective and evidence-based teaching
techniques are learned and utilized by current and future teachers.
“Giving time to learners in a
fast-paced, productivity-focused world while meeting our own scholarly goals as
academicians is a huge challenge,” he said. “But if we expect others to make a
difference, we as teachers must demonstrate commitment to training others.
“The expectations here are really high, but I love my job
and that’s important. A close mentor of mine once said, ‘If you’re not having
fun at your job, then you need to find another one’. I’ve been given a lot of
support from mentors, colleagues and students to improve the way we teach and
learn. Considering the fact the UGA is my alma mater, this award is quite an
honor and a significant responsibility.”
07/17/10
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Commitment, Connection to Pharmacy
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Sprucing Up Your Pharmacy’s ‘Front Lawn’
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