Pharmacies are often stuck in a previous era, as emerging technologies are changing the role of humans in many industries.
Despite the rise of digital technology, drug acquisition remains a rote task for those who perform rote tasks, from processing payments and resolving pre-approvals to calling patients for refills and mailing customer satisfaction surveys. I still mostly rely on it.
All of that is finally starting to change.
It became clear that many pharmacy operations could now be performed using technology, freeing up time for more complex and challenging tasks such as patient care. Additionally, the healthcare system recognizes that expansion of the pharmacy business is only possible when technology and automation become the norm.
As such, some innovative organizations are building technologies that can be deployed within pharmacies to automate much of the manual work. These technologies are intended to address two major challenges facing the healthcare industry: talent shortages and medication adherence.
The pandemic has created a shortage of healthcare workers, including pharmacists and pharmacy technicians. Drug Store News reports that 80% of pharmacies nationwide are struggling to find pharmacists, despite a staggering 6.49 billion prescriptions last year and an ever-increasing workload. rice field. Technology can help alleviate this shortage by automating certain tasks, such as identifying barriers to restocking, assisting patients in onboarding specialty medicines, and resolving barriers between patients and medicines. increase. AI-powered conversations help patients get answers to pressing questions, drive engagement in the pharmacy, and allow pharmacists to spend time with patients who need additional support.
Another major challenge that automation can impact is medication adherence.the truth is that half Of all prescriptions, they are not taken correctly, such as not following the doctor’s instructions or not received from the pharmacy at all. There are three reasons for this: cost, inconvenience, and medical concerns. Automation can help solve these problems by making patient communication more consistent. For example, by proactively engaging with patients about side effects and pharmacy stocks, potential issues can be resolved before a dose is missed. Patients also benefit from automation. Because standing in long lines and being held up for an answer is never a pleasant experience.
AI, especially ChatGPT, is starting to permeate nearly every conversation about the future of business, and healthcare is no exception. In healthcare, however, the first impact of these new technologies is unlikely to be clinical intervention, and that is many years away. Instead, the earliest opportunity is behind the scenes to simplify any administrative task.
PBMs and healthcare systems have a huge opportunity to leverage AI to address the challenges of drug affordability and accessibility, from formulation validation to pre-approval resolution. It’s about laying down a digital track that enables patients to have a smoother, more cost-effective experience in the healthcare system, one that resembles the digital experiences we have in other aspects of our lives. It starts to become a thing.
Further automation of pharmacy and ordering workflows is one piece of that puzzle. Streamline behind-the-scenes work with the latest technology, giving front-line clinicians more time to focus on their patients.
Automated solutions include advanced patient management interfaces and virtual assistants to autonomously perform outreach, collect patient responses, and prioritize lists for pharmacy teams when medical team intervention is required can be created. This allows pharmacies to manage operations more efficiently and scale, while improving patient outcomes.
The slow pace of technology adoption in pharmacies is making life difficult for both pharmacy employees and patients in need. Now that AI is beginning to be widely adopted, new possibilities are emerging for pharmacies. We look forward to working with our partners to modernize the industry. This is an important development in our ongoing efforts to improve affordability and compliance as it may address staffing shortages and improve compliance.
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