Pharmacy Management

Critical Features - Pharmacy management systems must work unfailingly, flawlessly and seamlessly in complex multi-store, cross-geography environments to enable drugstore chains to operate efficiently and profitably.

Some of the functionality driven critical features include:
1. Smooth workflow processes enabling external services such as third party payments, DUR (Drug Utilization Review), consultation, wait time calculation, etc.
2. Integration capabilities for robotics/central fill, refill alerts, grouping of Rx's, point of sale (POS), reporting, order-to-promise, order/inventory management, labor scheduling, etc.
3. Centralized view of data including patient history, inventory and ability to fill prescriptions anywhere in the chain, vicinity store inventory view, Rx transfers
4. Ability to improve store productivity by off-loading activities to alternate locations using remote processing and workload balancing
5. Maintain schedule and records of counseling activities, particularly for Medicare MTM
6. requirements as well as allow for electronic signature capture
7. Ability to extend services and integrate across channels, viz., e-commerce, prescriptions, IVR/mail-order, kiosks, concierge, etc.

From the architecture perspective, pharmacy management systems can be centralized with Corporate as the hub and client terminals at the stores as spokes. An alternative could be standalone store-driven systems where frequent connectivity with headquarters is not essential, or even a combination of the two. The model to be followed can be selected based on a pharmacy chain's specific requirements.

The technology features essential in a pharmacy management system include:
1. Scalability to add stores on the network on the same foundation / platform
2. No performance variations due to additional stores or increased transaction volumes. Ability to manage peak loads considering a mix of 24 hour, extended hour and Normal hour operations
3. Quick response to user query/user inputs
4. Restricted access based on functionality and role
5. Real time synchronization between Corporate and stores for fast and convenient data transfer
6. Robust downtime architecture. Ability to continue prescription processing with minimal impact on productivity in connectivity breakdown scenarios
7. Flexibility to address specific requirements by setting rules and test/modify specific code areas
8. Reliable disaster recovery and back-ups with data storage at stores as well as at corporate
9. Ease of maintenance
10. Ease of integration and data transfer with other systems such as IVR, Robotics, PoS, website, etc.
11. Ability to ensure quick roll-outs of enhancements / upgrades

Options for Retail Pharmacies -
Pharmacy chains can choose between ready-to-deploy products, custom built products or buying out source code and customizing it for their requirements.
The right choice will depend on factors like size, geographical spread and complexities of each organization. Their current state with respect to system sophistication and process standardization are also important considerations.

Some critical factors that must be considered from the economic and implementation perspectives include:

• Effort and cost involved in developing/purchasing the base version
• Effort required to deploy the base version across a number of stores
• Development of user training modules and ease of transition
• Estimated long term maintenance effort and costs
• Effort and documentation for support team to stay abreast of developments
• Flexibility and ease of enhancements for future business needs
• Ability to run different versions in production, test and development for different environments and different applications

The product route
Although most existing products cover the base requirements, the overall picture of ready-built pharmacy systems is not encouraging. This is partly due to the lack of product choices in the field. Product vendors are yet to gain credibility with retail pharmacy chains due to:

• Unfulfilled promises in terms of product launches
• Rigid enhancement regimes
• Generic products that have failed to address specific pharmacy needs

In addition, a string of mergers and acquisitions has given rise to concerns over the viability and sustainability of vendors in this space.

Custom-built systems
Often for want of a better option, pharmacies have tried the custom build route. However, this option has had its own share of failures. The exception to this is a custom built system at one of the largest pharmacy chains that has become the gold standard in pharmacy systems. In fact, for over a decade, this system has helped provide the pharmacy a competitive advantage by offering significantly advanced capabilities over all other systems.

Buying the source code
Another option for retail pharmacies is to buy out the source code from product vendors and customize it for their specific requirements. With this option, retail pharmacies benefit from starting with an existing, working base version that can be beta-deployed to quickly ascertain changes or enhancements to be made. However there are significant challenges even in this mode:

• The source code version is often generic. If the beta deployment is not carefully planned and executed, it could trigger a strong negative sentiment and scuttle any further deployments (or even enhancements)
• Since the pharmacy would own the source code, it needs to figure out the mechanism and impact of changes. Frequently, the product vendor's commitment plummets after the sale is completed. Although some vendors may continue to provide support, it could come at a steep price which could alter the economics and make the option unviable.
• There is a strong need for organizational and governance processes to manage the product without which success can prove elusive. This is necessary as the pharmacy now needs to make arrangements to "manage the product" in the future.