6 Ways to Refresh Your Pharmacy This Spring
Posted on Apr 29, 2024
Spring is the perfect time to tidy up your pharmacy, from dusting off your shelves to reevaluating your workflows. In fact, a good “spring cleaning” can increase productivity, team engagement and patient care. Here are 6 ways to refresh your pharmacy this spring – and throughout the year:
Enhance your existing workflows.
While some parts of your workflow may function like a well-oiled machine, others may still cause bottlenecks and frustrations for patients and staff. Check in with your team to determine what’s working and what’s not. Then, brainstorm ways to improve the less-than-optimal parts of your operations. Maybe you need another workstation, or you could leverage pill counters and your pharmacy software to automate certain aspects of the fulfillment or patient communication process.
Remove waste from your shelves.
While you should be keeping tabs on your inventory year-round, managing your inventory is an important part of keeping your pharmacy shelves clean. Start by reviewing your sales and inventory reports to determine how each medication is moving and its carrying cost. That way you can adjust your reorder points if needed, especially for expensive and slow-moving items. Then, work with your team to establish a schedule to check expiration dates and rotate items on your shelves. Remember, medications that are about to expire should be in front. You can also find creative ways to flag drugs that will be expiring soon by using a specific marking or sticker. This helps eliminate product waste and make managing your inventory easier in the long run.
Rotate which OTC items you’re promoting.
Seasonal changes often bring shifts in the OTC products that are in demand. While some items like aspirin and multivitamins may remain consistent throughout the year, allergy medications and sunscreen sales will likely start to increase. To prepare, we recommend reviewing your previous spring sales reports to help predict what items perform well this time of year. Then you can adjust your reorder points and update your front-end displays to feature these items. Plus, BestPOS users can create sales promotions for these items and leverage our free integration with Local Inventory on Google to add them to their Google Business Profile as well.
Optimize your workstations.
Not only is a clean, clear workspace more pleasant for you and your staff, but eliminating clutter can reduce the risk of mistakes as well. For example, rather than having multiple stock bottles out, make sure you’re returning each bottle to the appropriate shelf as soon as you’re done with it. We also recommend checking your equipment and technology to ensure they’re functioning properly. First, make sure you’re using the latest version of your pharmacy software and taking advantage of any new features and integrations that may be available. Next, check your computers, printers, and payment terminals to ensure they’re in good working order. Then, test your blood pressure monitors, thermometers, and scales. This way you can address any issues or order new equipment – before it has an impact on your operations.
Clean up your customer service.
Spend some time evaluating your current patient interactions and touchpoints. How are you communicating sales promotions and new services? Do you have a high prescription abandonment rate? If so, there are several ways you can enhance the level of service and care you’re providing, many of which can be found in your software. From auto refill and med sync programs to online refill requests and email or text alerts, your pharmacy management system is full of tools to help you increase patient satisfaction and engagement.
Strengthen your team.
Before spring and summer staff vacations, it’s important to check in on your team and assess your staffing levels. You may need to hire additional techs and pharmacists, even on a temporary or part-time basis, to cover any anticipated gaps. It’s also a great time to complete annual performance reviews and any staff training that may be needed. This ensures everyone is up to date on the latest operational and safety protocols and understands their role in patient care and the success of your store. To boost morale and employee loyalty, you may want to consider coordinating a fun outing or team dinner as well.
Taking steps to refresh your pharmacy not only ensures you’re operating as efficiently as possible, but it can positively impact your patient experience and staff morale as well. Request a free demo to learn more about all the ways BestRx can help you clean up your pharmacy.