As pharmacy owners know, getting patients with chronic diseases to comply with medication treatments is a common problem. Oftentimes, patients struggle with adherence, due to having to pick up their prescriptions at different times. The inconvenience of driving to a pharmacy and waiting for the prescription to be filled can lead to patients not properly taking their medication in the correct doses, or in the correct time period. Some pharmacists are incorporating medication synchronization to help change that.
What is Medication Synchronization?
Medication synchronization occurs when pharmacists provide a patient with all their medication doses for the month, in only one visit. Pharmacists call the patient prior to filling the prescription and review the medication they are set to receive. Once everything is reviewed with the patient and the necessary changes are made, the prescription is filled by the pharmacy. Then a date is set when the patient comes into the pharmacy and picks up all the necessary prescriptions in just one visit.
Why is Med Sync Beneficial to Patients?
Through medication synchronization, pharmacists are able to see valuable changes in a few ways. For example, patients who successfully comply with their medication regimen are more likely to see positive changes in their overall health. As every pharmacist knows, correctly taking the right medications can help patients avoid medical costs down the road. In addition, pharmacists are able to build personal connections with patients and potentially recommend other services that would benefit the patient.
Another reason medication synchronization is beneficial to pharmacists is that it increases revenue for a pharmacy. This happens because patients are taking the correct medications on a regular basis, whereas before they might have been missing one or two medications every so often. With medication synchronization, pharmacists are able to fill more prescriptions, increasing their dispensing output, which ultimately increases their profit.
A third benefit is that pharmacies are able to save inventory costs by knowing exactly which medications will be needed. Pharmacy owners also benefit when the number of prescriptions abandoned by patients is reduced with the program. Instead of holding on to medications that are not commonly requested, pharmacists are able to order the exact quantity to fill a patient's prescription.
How Can a Pharmacy Start a Med Sync Program?
If your pharmacy is considering starting a medication synchronization program at your pharmacy, here are a few tips that can help you get started. First, consider how many patients receive a large number of medications on a monthly basis. Once these patients have been identified, pick a few patients who would benefit from the med sync program.
Keep track of patients and their medications with the help of technology. Create a list that allows you to access the appropriate information. Some pharmacy management systems have a med sync function built-in, which will help you manage the program. In addition, all staff should be trained on the med sync program. This will ensure that staff are aware of the benefits of the program, and can assist by sharing information with patients or by helping make the calls, or even fill orders.
Incorporating the medication synchronization program into your pharmacy does not take as much time as you might expect. A staff member can be assigned the task of making the calls and setting the monthly patient pickup date. During slow times, pharmacists can fill the prescriptions to have them ready by the pickup date.
It is also important that patients who participate in the program know how important it is for them to make sure to arrive on their designated pickup days. This will allow the pharmacy to have their prescriptions ready, and avoid long delays on busier days.
How Does Med Sync Keep Patients Synchronized?
The easiest way to keep your patient “in sync” is to use compliance packaging that makes it as easy as possible for them to take their meds properly. For example, adherence strip packaging produces multi-med pouches labeled with the medication name, date and time to be taken. All the medication is presorted, so a patient simply tears open the pouch and takes the meds inside at the designated time. The pouches are compact so they’re perfect to travel with, and will fit easily into a purse or suitcase.
To learn more about the adherence strip packaging technology built into the RapidPakRx system, visit our product page, schedule a demo with your salesperson, or call now at (877) 365-2369.
