Why Your Pharmacy Design Need to Be Different Today

You have always done what is best for your customers, and that has set you apart from your most challenging competitors.

There are now privacy regulations in effect that will change how your pharmacy design must be set up, and new challenges faced by the healthcare industry that you can step in and help manage. To that end, your pharmacy design must meet these challenges head-on – and continue to provide your customers with the convenience, comfort and service they've always enjoyed.

The change that by law should be part of your pharmacy design right now

PHI protection for patients

As of September 2013, new HIPAA regulations were put into effect that intend to protect patients' personal health information, or PHI. Patients are now able to restrict who can see their PHI, with security regulations much tighter. Now, all breaches must be reported to patients, not just those that are significantly risky to affected individuals; but those that are allowed under the privacy rule are still acceptable.

Regulations require that you:

• Maintain strict protocols and controls so that personnel access is restricted for the electronic media and hardware that store PHI

• Make workstations centralized, with policies that restrict when workstations can be accessed

• Implement authentication measures with every login

• Restrict locations where devices used to access personal information are allowed, with specific protocols used to move, eliminate, or reuse components

The change to your pharmacy design that can open up new avenues of profit – and help ease the burden on the healthcare industry

Clinical pharmacy

The Affordable Care Act's implementation and other factors have further stressed an already overburdened healthcare industry. Patients often struggle to get the expedient, cost-effective care they need for non-urgent medical situations.

Urgent care centers, for example, have taken some of the burden off emergency room personnel and primary care physicians, they still do not address patients' day-to-day concerns and need for minor non-emergency medical situations that still require medical attention – until now. Introducing clinical pharmacy.

How clinical pharmacy can expand how you serve your customers

With clinical pharmacy, you will not be handling emergency medical situations. Instead, nurse practitioners function as primary care physicians for non-urgent situations. Patients can:

• Schedule appointments with very little notice and be seen very quickly, rather than having to wait for an appointment
   
• Spend significant time with qualified medical personnel who will diagnose and treat their problem without making them feel rushed or anxious as can happen in traditional medical settings
   
• Get non-urgent medical needs met cost-effectively

Your pharmacy layout will necessarily include an area with waiting and examination areas should you choose to go into clinical pharmacy, but can be done quite cost-effectively if planned properly in your pharmacy design and can significantly improve your profits – and serve your community's customers in a way that is most convenient and expedient for them.

Your pharmacy layout must be warm and inviting

The old days of the institutional pharmacy with stark white walls and institutional lighting are gone. Make your pharmacy interior warm and inviting, with:

• A pleasant decor

• Attractive (carpeted/wood) flooring

• Soft lighting

• An easy to follow layout with clear signs and an easy to navigate footpath that takes customers  through the store

You can easily provide all of these things, and still offer the customer service and personal attention you are already known for. You will serve your community, provide much-needed services customers have difficulty getting elsewhere, and be in complete compliance with today's newest regulations.