"We wouldn't give it up," says Tom Erickson, Group Health Pharmacy Manager, referring to the SP 200. The ScriptPro system was chosen to automate the Group Health Central Pharmacy to meet specific objectives: improve workflow, reduce error rate, and ease stress on the staff caused by continuing employee shortages.

When automation was considered, Tom Colleran, Manager of Refill, and Erickson researched the options. Colleran determined that the SP 200 was the right size, both "physically and fill-wise," for the space and volume in the pharmacy. "The cost was easily justified by increases in workflow effectiveness and transfer of salaries from staff vacancies."

"No one lost a job," Erickson points out. The pharmacy was often under-staffed because of technician shortages. With the SP 200, "The pharmacy saved 1 ½ FTE's of tech time and the job is less stressful for the existing staff."

With the ScriptPro system, Colleran notes, "the canister calibration is done ourselves on-site. We are sending out the other canisters in the refill department quite frequently."

Erickson commented, "From a quality point of view, the reduction of errors is significant. We have been able to show that the SP 200 virtually eliminates errors as far as wrong drug, wrong strength and quantity error." Colleran also attributes error reduction to the visual checking system of the SP 200.

Erickson sums it up this way, "We don't even have to think about the SP 200. It just hums along in the background, doesn't take breaks, doesn't go on vacation. It has certainly added efficiency, reduced errors and decreased wait time for our customers."