Running a Better Pharmacy: The Place for Robotics
Sam Kalmanowitz finds ScriptPro’s system is another example
of how technology has improved his pharmacy practice.
Reprinted from ComputerTalk for the Pharmacist
• May/June 2002
By Will Lockwood
Sam
Kalmanowitz is no stranger to innovative technology in his pharmacy.
It was 1980 when he installed the QS/1 pharmacy system at Kaye’s
Pharmacy, his high-volume store in Meriden, Conn. His was also
the first pharmacy in New England to install ScriptPro’s SP 200
robotic dispensing system and the third pharmacy in the country
to use ScriptPro’s SP Central pharmacy dispensing management system.
Kalmanowitz doesn’t do it for bragging rights. “My main objective
is accuracy and safety in filling prescriptions,” he says. Dispensing
accuracy and safety come from highly integrated systems that create
a carefully controlled process that can be fully audited and checked.
The SP 200 and SP Central systems intercept the prescription’s
NDC number as it is transmitted to the printer after processing
and adjudication by the QS/1 system. If the prescription is one
of up to 200 different tablets or caplets that are housed in the
SP 200, the robot automatically fills the vial and prints and
applies a label. The prescription is delivered open for a final
visual check by the pharmacist against the extensive drug image
database available through the SP Central workstations. Kalmanowitz
estimates that he fills two-thirds of the by Will Lockwood store’s
prescriptions, excluding nursing-home and home health care orders,
using the robotic dispensing system. Any item that is not in the
SP 200 is routed into the SP Central and filled by hand. However,
uniformity of dispensing is maintained because the pharmacist
or technician scans the barcode on the manufacturer’s bottle
and matches this with the drug keyed into the pharmacy system.
The SP Central again provides an image of the drug for visual
verification and prints out a label for the vial. As Kalmanowitz
points out: “What we get is manual filling with all the benefits
of the automated computer checks. The safety features are the
same whether we fill from the robot or by hand.”
The organization provided by automation does not stop with the
fill. The SP Central batches all prescriptions and assigns them
to 15 to 20 locations, including will call, delivery, narcotics
to be held for ID, items to be reconstituted, compounds, nursing
home, and more. The pharmacy is equipped with six SP Central workstations
that allow employees to log into the system with a user-specific
ID and find out where a prescription is at any time during the
filling process. The system also shows where the prescription
was batched. Kalmanowitz has installed three SP Central checkout
stations that record the prescription as dispensed in the master
record. Again, any employee can use the checkout station after
logging in.
The Advantages
There are other advantages to using automation to keep careful
track of prescriptions. For example, after receiving an order
from a distributor, someone normally has to check the items against
any partial fills. But the SP Central saves time by allowing a
scan of the manufacturer’s packaging to generate a list of all
partial fills that are waiting for the new inventory. Kalmanowitz
also sets the SP 200 to give him a visual alert when any of the
cells reaches a predefined minimum quantity and to produce a daily
report of the inventory in the cells. Another beneficial feature
Kalmanowitz uses is the ability of the system to track the exact
cost per unit of his inventory in real time. Automation and robotic
filling has also made it easier to comply with new regulations.
“Connecticut has recently begun to require a lot number and expiration
date on the label of everything we dispense,” Kalmanowitz says.
“We just key it in and SP Central produces one neat label with
all the necessary information, including instructions.”
Tangible
Benefits
While automation and robotic filling can help to reduce the risk
of errors, it can provide other tangible benefits to a pharmacy
and its customers. For instance, there’s the time gained by the
pharmacy staff. Not only is less time spent counting pills during
the work day, but, after the 20 minutes of daily maintenance the
robot requires, Kalmanowitz has the SP 200 process the 25 to 40
prescriptions that are waiting on the IVR on a typical morning
before the store opens. That keeps customers from waiting. “It
is a very efficient use of our time,” says Kalmanowitz. “We are
there anyway to open the store, and can do other things while
the robot runs.” Automation will reduce the time that a pharmacist
spends filling vials, but Kalmanowitz hasn’t reduced his staff.
He has made his SP 200 clearly visible to his customers and encouraged
his staff to use the time gained to provide more personal service.
“But the real gain has been in safety and efficiency,” says Kalmanowitz.
“I figure the machine has cost me $14.25 an hour to run and that’s
cheap when you consider that it doesn’t take vacations, it’s not
late, and you don’t have to supervise it. My staff and I have
the confidence to spend our time with solving problems and working
with customers. The service we can offer keeps our customers coming
back.”
A Good Match
The SP Central and SP 200 have been very reliable so far. Kalmanowitz
calls ScriptPro’s onsite training excellent. “Over the course
of a week, they spent time with everyone who would use the system
and were there when we went live,” he says. “Three months later
ScriptPro sent a trainer out unannounced to observe and offer
advice.” What little maintenance the staff has been unable to
do is handled remotely by dialing into the systems or by a local
technician. In all, Kalmanowitz has found that the addition of
a robotic filling and workflow system to his operations has only
confirmed his experience that technology helps him run a better
pharmacy.
Will Lockwood is a senior editor at ComputerTalk. His email address
is will@computertalk.com.
