As an independent pharmacist, you have always taken care of your patients, providing personal care and attention with medication advice, proper dosing, and other services as required.
Your future pharmacy will be quite similar – but it may be in your best interests as well as your patients' best interests to consider moving into clinical services in addition to those you already provide. Why?
The Affordable Care Act means that today more people than ever before have access to affordable healthcare. This is certainly good news, but it also means that patients will need venues that will make seeking that healthcare convenient and affordable – and that's where you come in. You can further cement your future in pharmacy with expanded pharmacy services -- specifically, clinical pharmacy.
What is clinical pharmacy and why is it so important for your future in pharmacy?
Clinical pharmacy is provided by independent pharmacists like you. You help ease the burden on the healthcare system and fulfill a great need for your patients by providing quick and convenient access to non-urgent medical care. It's important to you because it provides yet another revenue stream for you to rely on, thus improving profits for you.
How can you flourish in the community by changing your pharmacy this way?
Patients with non-urgent medical care needs are underserved in the current system. They can visit primary care physicians, of course, but today's physicians are usually very busy and stressed out with patients who have more serious medical needs, meaning that those with non-urgent medical needs will be rushed at best.In addition, while the emergency room and urgent care may appear to be other options at first glance, both urgent care and the ER are meant to serve patients with more serious or even critical health problems. They are not meant to serve patients with non-urgent medical needs, and using them in this capacity only stresses an already overburdened medical care system. This is where you can help.
Affordable, cost-effective, and convenient, clinical pharmacy can cement your future in pharmacy because you'll be serving a niche of patients that are greatly underserved.
What will you need in order to offer expanded pharmacy services?
You will need a clean, quiet, private space separate from the rest of the pharmacy where patients can wait and be seen. Your pharmacy clinic will be staffed by qualified nurse practitioners instead of medical doctors; they can provide the necessary medical attention non-urgent patients need. This is usually done much more efficiently and less expensively than through more traditional venues.How should you create this private space?
There are at least two ways:
- Add on to your current pharmacy and then provide a private entrance to the clinical pharmacy area
You can make your clinical pharmacy area separate from the rest of your store by walling off that portion of your pharmacy and then providing a separate entrance.
- Partition off part of your current store's floor space
If you don't really need to add on, you can wall off part of your existing pharmacy floor space to give staff and patients an entirely separate area to work in.
With the advent of the Affordable Care Act, you have the unique opportunity to expand into clinical services. You'll be doing good for your community by providing healthcare services to a vastly underserved population so that while you serve your patients, you cement your own future and improve profits, too.
