North Century Pharmacy has been serving the community of Columbia, Kentucky for approximately six years. The independent pharmacy is known for treating patients like family and implementing innovative services to improve patient experience.
Easton Bryant, owner of North Century Pharmacy, wanted to continue growing his business but the pharmacy’s blister card program was hindering his success. “We were starting to hit a plateau with our previous compliance packaging,” says Bryant.
“What led to our decision to find a solution was that we knew we didn't want to stop growing in this area, so it was obvious for us that we needed to make the investment to keep growing,” adds Bryant.
Investing in Their Workflow
After coming to the realization that he needed to improve his pharmacy’s workflow and grow his patient base, Bryant found a solution in the RapidPakRx.
“It was becoming very time consuming to take care of the patients that we were packaging for prior to RapidPakRx,” says Bryant. North Century Pharmacy was using bubble packaging as its compliance solution, but the pharmacy was not able to add more patients to its bubble packaging system.
“A lot of manual inspection was involved, so a lot of pharmacist time was being taken up doing the blister packaging,” says Bryant, “It was hard to feel great about the quality of service having to do manual inspection with multiple pills and small blister packs.”
“From a pharmacist standpoint with the RapidPakRx, visual inspection goes so quickly,” says Bryant, “We're able to save a lot of money on labor.”
The RapidPakRx can complete packaging for up to 50 patients per day, using one technician in an 8-hour shift. The all-in-one design simplifies workflow significantly and eliminates the need to purchase multiple machines.
“[With the old system;] we were having to do inspection in different parts of the pharmacy, but with RapidPakRx we have a clear beginning and end and it makes things very simple,” says Bryant.
Tackling DIR Fees
For many independent pharmacy owners, DIR fees significantly hurt their bottom line. Although DIR fees can’t be directly controlled, independent pharmacy owners are trying different strategies to reduce their fees.
“When we invested in the RapidPakRx, we also made it a point as a team to tackle DIR fees head-on,” says Bryant.
“Before the RapidPakRx, we were missing all four of the major EQuIPP goals by just a little bit,” says Bryant, “By being more intentional, just in a few months time, we're hitting three out of four goals and we hope to hit all four very soon.”
The RapidPakRx is helping North Century Pharmacy significantly improve its patient adherence. Each pouch is labeled with the time and date the medications need to be taken, making it easy for patients to successfully track their medications.
Properly adhering to their medications helps patients feel healthier and stay on track while helping North Century Pharmacy minimize its DIR fees.
Reaching a New Audience
“We get a lot of referrals from providers and from patients alike when they don't know where to turn to,” says Bryant. North Century Pharmacy is located in a small town, so reaching new patients can be challenging.
“Prior to installing the RapidPakRx, we were packaging for about 85 patients,” says Bryant, “Now, just three months in, we're over 150 patients at this point, and that's only prescription patients.”
North Century Pharmacy also offers supplement packs. Each pouch is designed to target different vitamin needs, and the pharmacy even offers mini vitamin packs for kids. “We have a ton of patients packaging their supplements with us, and our supplement business has actually grown by more than five times,” says Bryant.
“Since installing the RapidPakRx, we've been able to reach a whole new audience,” says Bryant. “It's no longer just the aging population that has to come to the pharmacy for prescriptions, we have a younger generation interested in being proactive about their health.”
Compliance packaging can be a solution for a variety of health needs. Each patient can have their medications and supplements packaged in a 31-day supply, making it easy and convenient to properly adhere.
A Competitive Mindset
“When it comes to our business, I have a competitive mindset,” says Bryant, “We're in a small town outside the city limits, and we have a lot of competition.”
“I would definitely recommend the RapidPakRx to another pharmacist because with today's pharmacy climate you have to stand out,” says Bryant. PBMs and chain pharmacies are challenging independent pharmacists to find creative solutions to remain competitive.
“Since we started offering this innovative service, we're picking up about two to three new patients a week,” says Bryant, “The average monthly value per new patient for us is $200 gross profit.”
To learn more about the RapidPakRx, please visit our product page or speak with a compliance packaging expert: (877) 797-2332
