Good medicine Retail Independent Pharmacy | 2018 - Cardinal Health

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Good medicine Retail Independent Pharmacy | 2018 - Cardinal Health
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Retail Independent Pharmacy | 2018
Good medicine Retail Independent Pharmacy | 2018 - Cardinal Health
Dear reader,
   Independent pharmacies continue to be the cornerstone of the
   community­—supporting your local teams, doing what’s best for your
   town and going out of your way to make sure each of your patients
   is uniquely served. I love hearing the stories of how each of you go
   above and beyond for your patients, and sharing these stories with
   fellow readers in good medicine magazine.

   This edition, we focus on publishing stories that share tangible steps
   for success. Our solution spotlight section includes examples of
   how pharmacy owners are creating opportunities by implementing
   a variety of solutions, ultimately improving patient care. In the
   innovative ideas section, you’ll read about how independent
   pharmacies used out-of-the-box thinking to grow their businesses,
   and in read all about it, we help you stay on top of the latest
   industry news.

   For five years, we’ve been publishing good medicine magazine. Our
   goal is to provide a place to share best practices, offer education on
   the latest industry trends and foster a sense of community among
   you and your peers.

   I hope you enjoy the fifth edition of good medicine magazine.

   Thank you for reading,

   Steve Lawrence

   Senior Vice President, Independent Sales
Good medicine Retail Independent Pharmacy | 2018 - Cardinal Health
Innovative Ideas
02 - Patient advocacy: Connecting patients with services

03 - Lose to Win: Weight-loss competition attracts customers

                                                                    table of contents
05 - Blogging outside the box: Connecting online with clients

07 - Quick tips: Enhance your social media presence

08 - Noteworthy: Smoking cessation program finds success

08 - Noteworthy: “Give a shot” program benefits local charity

09 - Integrative health: Finding balance through yoga

11 - Community connection: Embracing a legacy for the future

13 - Technician Product Verification: Focusing on patient care

Solution Spotlight
16 - TelePharm: The changing face of pharmacy

19 - Point-of-Care Testing: The new wave of reaching clients

21 - Inventory Manager: More than an out-of-the-box program

23 - Medication adherence: Tools for success
    - 5 ways to improve adherence
    - Dispill® Multi-dose Packaging
    - Know your patient better
    - Reimbursement services

27 - Pharmacy Transition Services: Keeping pharmacies independent

29 - Securing your pharmacy: What you should be doing

31 - Order Express: Optimize SOURCESM Generic purchasing

33 - Pharmacy Marketing Advantage: Let’s get digital

35 - Conversion conundrum: Who are your consumers?

Read All About It
38 - Provider status: Why pharmacists must be providers

39 - Preparing for the worst: The aftermath of Hurricane Maria

41 - Industry predictions: Moving forward in 2018

43 - NCPA updates: News from the legislative front

45 - 340B contract pharmacy: Expanding access to care

47 - Forefront of pharmacy: What women leaders have to say

49 - Closing the gap: Women in Pharmacy emerges in Puerto Rico

50 - Generation Rx Champions: Transforming chronic pain care

51 - Generation Rx: Fighting prescription drug misuse

52 - Opioid Action Program: Combating the opioid epidemic
Good medicine Retail Independent Pharmacy | 2018 - Cardinal Health
innovative
                     ideas
                     Sometimes it takes a little out-of-the-box thinking to find
                     success. Check out how pharmacies used innovative ideas
                     to grow their businesses.
cardinalhealth.com

                     Patient advocacy: Connecting patients with services

                     Lose to Win: Weight-loss competition attracts customers

                     Blogging outside the box: Connecting online with clients

                     Quick tips: Enhance your social media presence

                     Noteworthy: Smoking cessation program finds success

                     Noteworthy: “Give a shot” program benefits local charity
Innovative Ideas

                     Integrative health: Finding balance through yoga

                     Community connection: Embracing a legacy for the future

                     Technician Product Verification: Focusing on patient care
01
Good medicine Retail Independent Pharmacy | 2018 - Cardinal Health
Game changer –
Community Liaison program
improves patient adherence,
community outreach
Through an innovative approach developed two                    ramps built due to health diagnoses or finding resources to
years ago, Chris Han has seen a change in the                   meet non-pharmacy needs, such as community programs
landscape of patient care.                                      patients would not otherwise be aware of,” Buck said.

The CEO of Cannon Pharmacies, a seven-store group in the        As a result, patients may no longer have to choose
greater Charlotte, N.C., area, hired Amanda Buck, a social      between filling their prescriptions and getting other needs
worker for 17 years with the Department of Social Services.     met. They also may have better health outcomes, reduce
                                                                rehospitalization, and be better caregivers for loved ones.
“There are often more issues going on for patients than meets
 the eye,” Han said.                                            “The aging population is growing at a rapid pace,” Han said.
                                                                “In terms of getting connected into that aging population and
Buck, who serves as community liaison outreach director,         leveraging those relationships, it’s been pretty exciting.”
says her experience has trained her to look at the patients,
who may be polypharmacy and have medication adherence           The exposure this program has brought to Cannon
dilemmas, with a different lens and to develop a team to        Pharmacies through networking, outreach and word-of-
address those dilemmas as they arise.                           mouth has shown professionals and the community that
                                                                Cannon is more than just a prescription-filling pharmacy,
This community outreach team includes Buck, patient             but rather a place that believes in making life easier for
advocates who research grants and patient assistance            its patients.
programs for medications, and a social worker who works
with patients to identify the unmet assistance and resource     “It has fostered better relationships with our patients and has
needs that may have contributed to their medication              allowed us to be a trusted source of help for others in the
adherence issues.                                                community,” Buck said. “It has been a game changer for us.”

“If someone isn’t able to afford medicine, the pharmacists
 and patient advocacy staff do an amazing job with
 finding cost-saving alternatives to medicines that include
 less-expensive generics, grants, coupons and patient
 assistance programs,” Buck said.

The team’s social worker and Buck work toward identifying
the underlying needs of the patients, as well as finding
resources that help address the needs that can be related
to medication adherence issues.

“These vary widely and can range from finding ways to get       Amanda Buck, Cannon Pharmacy

      For more information on Cannon Pharmacies’ enhanced services, go to cannonpharmacies.com.

                                                                                                               good medicine 2018   02
Good medicine Retail Independent Pharmacy | 2018 - Cardinal Health
Tennessee pharmacy uses the
                     scale to attract new customers
                             It’s not often the biggest loser is the
                             biggest winner.
                             Joe McKamey knows that firsthand. After
                             all, he has had a lot of “losers” walk through
cardinalhealth.com

                             the doors of the pharmacy he manages in
                             Manchester, Tenn.
                             Through a weight-loss competition program
                             he created at Marcrom’s Pharmacy and
                             Wellness Center, McKamey has helped
                             improve the health of more than 2,000
Innovative Ideas

                             residents in the region, many of whom have
                             become regular customers since signing up
                             for the contest.

03
Good medicine Retail Independent Pharmacy | 2018 - Cardinal Health
How it works                                How it happened

As part of the “Lose to Win”                Implementing a program that has
weight- loss competition, participants      been responsible for 51,000 pounds
come into the pharmacy once a week          lost over the past 11 years doesn’t
for 10 weeks for a weigh-in. Customers      come without smart, strategic
participate as individuals, but are         planning.
also assigned to a team if they do not      In addition to using tools like social
register with one.                          media and direct mail marketing,
As individuals, they compete for the        the pharmacy—owned by
highest percentage of weight lost.          McKamey’s father-in-law Ray
As a team, participants earn points         Marcrom—piggybacked onto other
for attending weekly educational            promotions that already were part of
meetings the pharmacy hosts, as well        the marketing budget.

                                                                                      “ Weserve
as completing other activities during
the week.
                                            For example, Marcrom’s Pharmacy
                                            regularly pays for a radio spot.
                                                                                             want to
                                            “Around the kick-off of the contest,                our
                                             we just use that time to promote the

           How it benefits
                                             competition, so it’s not new dollars        community,
                                             being spent,” McKamey said.
                                            In addition to emphasizing education,
                                                                                        but when you
Each participant pays an entry fee
to compete, with those funds going
                                            motivation and accountability
                                            to the participants, McKamey
                                                                                        serve without
toward paying for T-shirts, meeting
space and cash prizes given to the
                                            says pharmacy owners and staff                expecting
                                            beginning a community-based
winners at the end of the competition.
                                            program like “Lose to Win” must              anything in
“Even at $100 per person, the pharmacy      follow the same pillars to find success
 does a little better than break even       and ultimately draw more customers.       return, ultimately
 on the competition, but ultimately,
 we end up gaining several more
                                            McKamey held himself accountable
                                            by embarking upon his own weight
                                                                                         good things     “
 customers each session,” McKamey
 said. Participants often transfer their
                                            loss journey, losing 75 pounds.                happen.
 prescription medications to Marcrom’s      “Utilize your story and give people
 Pharmacy, as well as purchase several       hope,” he said. “It then slowly begins       — Joe McKamey,
 of the health products available at the     to grow and over time when people           Marcrom’s Pharmacy
 store, including protein bars and mixes.    see you’re consistently committed
                                             to something, you’ve then proven to
“It’s good branding and marketing, but
                                             them that you’re trustworthy and you
 that’s not why we do it ultimately,”
                                             aren’t going anywhere.”
 McKamey said. “We want to serve
 our community, but when you serve
 without expecting anything in return,
 ultimately good things happen.”

       Follow the “Lose to Win” program on Marcrom’s Pharmacy’s Facebook page.

                                                                                                   good medicine 2018   04
Good medicine Retail Independent Pharmacy | 2018 - Cardinal Health
Blogging outside
                     the box
                     Pharmacist uses wellness blog
                     to connect with customers
                     Though it’s often the writing on a prescription pad
                     that connects Carmina Lolley with her customers, it’s
                     her own written words that have created a unique
                     method of communication with local residents.
                                                           The staff RN, herbalist and co-owner at
                                                           Medicine World in Nashua, New Hampshire,
                                                           publishes a wellness blog, allowing customers
                                                           to connect with Lolley beyond the pharmacy
                                                           window. In the blog, called “Carmina’s Corner,”
                                                           she offers a variety of tools and other advice
                                                           for better health - from spring cleanses to ways
                                                           to fight off cold and flu season. She updates
                                                           her blog about once a month, and promotes
                                                           it using social media - an addition to her
                                                           marketing tools that has helped spread word-
cardinalhealth.com

                                                           of-mouth and drive traffic to her pharmacy.
                                                           Lolley shared her advice for using creativity to
                                                           reach customers in an evolving world and what
                                                           it takes to do a little thinking outside the script.
Innovative Ideas

                        — Carmina Lolley, Medicine World
05
Good medicine Retail Independent Pharmacy | 2018 - Cardinal Health
How has publishing a blog helped drive traffic to
your pharmacy?
Advertising to keep your name out there is tough. My best advertising dollar was in the yellow pages, but that has now
passed. I tried social media and it seemed to give me a little response. Now I mention to my customers to go out and
read my blog and guess what they do? Now they actually go looking for at least a monthly post.

  ”
        HAVING A BLOG HAS...                                                 What advice do you
 reinforced my belief                                                        have for a pharmacist
                                                                             who is thinking of
 that educating your                                                         starting a blog?
 clients is something                                                        Be consistent. This will keep your regulars reading and

 that they want.
                                            ”
                                                                             new eyes will happen—slowly, but surely. I also am
                                                                             working with local magazines now who publish my
 — Carmina Lolley, RN                                                        blog and I advertise with them as well. No matter how
                                                                             you slice it, it is important to keep your name out there
                                                                             and it definitely takes a little creativity today.
How much work did it
take to start the blog?
What challenges did you face?
I finally found someone who works with me—after many failed
attempts. There are three of us, one who helps with graphics,
one who works at keeping the website clean, and myself who
writes the content. I am spending a little more than I spent in
the yellow pages. I work a little more, as well, because content
is updated monthly. However, this has reinforced my belief that
educating your clients is something that they want.

      To check out Carmina’s Corner, go to medicineworldnh.com.

                                                                                                                 good medicine 2018      06
Good medicine Retail Independent Pharmacy | 2018 - Cardinal Health
8
                     1
                                 WAYS
                                 you can enhance your
                                  social media presence

                         Highlight photos of your customers (with their permission).

                     2   Communicate sales and events to your followers.

                     3   Offer contests and drive engagement/excitement through
                         Facebook.

                     4   Use your cover photo to communicate the various ways
                         patients can refill their prescriptions.

                     5   Offering something your competitors don’t have? Make sure to
                         promote it!

                     6   Patients see you as their healthcare expert — share your
                         opinion on current health news/trends.

                     7   Post photos of your staff and capitalize on events in the area
cardinalhealth.com

                         that your patients are excited about.

                     8   Feature spotlights on your employees so your patients can get
                         to know your staff more.
Innovative Ideas

07
Noteworthy

Getting the community
excited to give back
Woodward, Okla., only has a population of around 12,000, yet with six retail

                                                                                                  Erik Hudson, Western Drug
pharmacies, Erik Hudson knew the importance of finding new and innovative ways
to promote his store, Western Drug. Though “Get a Shot. Give a Shot.” campaigns
had become popular, Hudson decided to localize this concept further and donate
a percentage of every vaccination his pharmacy administered to a youth shelter
in Woodward. After implementing the program, Hudson approached the city,
explaining that his program benefited local youth. Officials liked the idea that
donations stayed in their community and allowed Hudson to set up vaccination
clinics in the community for city employees. “The idea sells itself and gets your
community excited to come to your pharmacy for their vaccines,” Hudson said. “We
have seen tremendous growth as local employers, schools, municipalities, and fire
and police stations are choosing us over large chain competitors to do on-site flu
shot clinics because they love the idea of giving back to local charities.”

Noteworthy

Snuffing out smoking
Marty Hinterlong has a passion for helping

                                                                                                  Marty Hinterlong, Medicine Shoppe
others quit smoking. As owner of the
Medicine Shoppe in St. Clair, Mo., Hinterlong
started a Facebook group for his community
in support of smoking cessation. Other
pharmacies became involved, and, so far,
nearly two dozen residents have stopped
smoking. Hinterlong also began a campaign
where he offers nicotine replacement
products slightly over his cost in an attempt
to increase smoking cessation. This program,
along with monthly diabetic classes he offers
that focuses on lifestyle changes, help him
serve his community while encouraging
him and others to stay up-to-date on health
initiatives that affect his customers.

                                                                                     good medicine 2018                               08
How a pharmacist is
                     changing lives through yoga
                     A return to wholeness
                     Chemistry is intriguing for all pharmacists, especially the interactions
                     among drugs, herbs and even foods.
                     One chemical reaction that a pharmacist from New                  “The question is, can therapeutic yoga help us manage the
                     Hampshire witnessed, however, changed the course of his            escalation of polypharmacy?” Gupta said. “I believe so.”
                     career – the interaction between yoga and the body.
                                                                                       As director of pharmacy and integrative health for a large
                     Jay Gupta, a registered pharmacist, certified immunizer and       federally-qualified health center, Gupta has worked with the
                     MTM specialist, teaches yoga and meditation at his Harbor         homeless population, where he has seen many suffer from
                     Care Health and Wellness Center as a way to step outside the      serious mental health diagnoses and substance use disorders.
                     traditional role pharmacists play in the healthcare field.        He has a space dedicated for meetings, yoga and meditation
                                                                                       in front of the pharmacy to help this sector of the population,
                     “Pharmacists are experts in the use of molecules that can         as well as others.
                      enhance physical, mental and emotional health,” he said.
                     “Research is expanding these options beyond prescription          “Offering seated therapeutic yoga classes enhances my
                      medications.”                                                     patient interaction beyond dispensing and counseling,” he
                                                                                        said. “I’m not just telling them to go and make a lifestyle
                     The National Institutes of Health lists the various components     change. It’s an opportunity for me to come out of my box
                     of yoga as the top integrative health modality, Gupta says,        and hold my patients’ hands in their journeys toward health.”
                     and published data indicates yoga may help more than 100
                     physical and mental health conditions.

                     “As community pharmacists, we are called upon to know and
                      educate our patients about everything that has a potential to
                      change the body’s chemistry, so why not yoga?” he said. “It
                                                                                          What is “polypharmacy?”
                      behooves us as pharmacists to be educated about yoga and
                      other integrative health options that can potentially interact
                      with the drugs—not just to avoid the risks, but also
                                                                                          Polypharmacy is the
                      to enhance health.”
                                                                                          simultaneous use of
cardinalhealth.com

                     Gupta says as the population continues to age, pharmacists
                     are witnessing a growing problem called “polypharmacy.”
                     Most pharmacists, he says, feel helpless when they notice a
                                                                                          multiple drugs by a
                     patient’s expanding medication list without corresponding
                     positive clinical outcomes.                                          single patient for one
                                                                                          or more conditions.
Innovative Ideas

                           For more information, visit harborhomes.org.

09
Pharmacist Jay Gupta (pictured front-row center) says incorporating yoga
classes can be a great opportunity for a community pharmacy.
Here are four components to consider, in his own words:

1
The first is education. What
                                2
                                Then, how can each
                                                                3
                                                                Then, how can we bring
                                                                                               4
                                                                                               Finally, how can we use
is therapeutic yoga? What is    pharmacist enhance their        this to our patients? We can   all of this information to
integrative health? What is     own health? In teaching         begin by establishing a set    develop some best practices
person-centered care?           nationally, I speak with        of recommendations that        in deprescription to reduce
Hint: It is beyond integrated   many colleagues who are         strengthen our relationship    polypharmacy and enhance
care models!                    hoping to reduce their own      with our customers/patients.   quality of life?
                                polypharmacy. This is an
                                opportunity for us to use
                                integrative health methods
                                to reverse toxic stress and
                                care for our own aching
                                bodies, insomnia, depression,
                                anxiety, etc.

                                                                                                           good medicine 2018   10
Community
                       Connection

                     Foster Drug Company embraces a
                     legacy in looking to the future
                     To Bill Foster, pharmacy meant more than filling prescriptions.   Six years after his death, that loyalty and willingness to take
                     It also meant caring about customers and devoting oneself         a chance are still embraced by those who have continued
                     to meeting their needs in the most innovative and effective       serving the community through Foster Drug.
                     ways possible.

                     “Bill always wanted to make sure you didn’t have to come
                      in here and wait if you had a sick child,” says Dianne Smith,
                      who has worked at the store since 1974. “He wanted to have
                      enough employees here to take care of you and get you on
                                                                                        “carry
                                                                                          We’re doing our best to
                                                                                               on and do things the
                      your way, which is why we probably have more employees
                      than any retail pharmacy around.”                                  way he would have wanted
                     To further enhance customer service and convenience, Foster         things to be done, and one
cardinalhealth.com

                     Drug Company became the first pharmacy in Mocksville, N.C.,
                     to have a computer and a drive-thru window.                         of those ways is to provide
                     Foster also implemented programs at his pharmacy that
                     have helped save lives, from a drug take-back initiative to a
                                                                                        the highest level of customer                    “
                     program that helps first responders identify a patient’s health          service available.
                     conditions upon arrival at a medical emergency. The “Vial
                     of Life Project” provides kits that allow patients to write
Innovative Ideas

                                                                                                            — Dianne Smith,
                     down their medications, health conditions and other critical
                                                                                                          Foster Drug Company
                     information, and place it on the refrigerator. A decal on the
                     front door alerts first responders to the kit.

11
It can be a tall order for those following   homemade soap, pottery and products         “We want to do something nice to
in his footsteps, including grand-           made by local artisans. The store also       welcome a new baby and its family into
daughter Karlyn Armsworthy, who says         performs outreach in the community,          the community and to our pharmacy,”
adopting Foster’s innovative spirit and      including operating a mobile flu clinic,     Armsworthy said.
passion for customer service has helped      hosting fundraisers for residents in
them implement a variety of fresh ideas      need and participating in health expos      These ideas, along with the desire to
that not only help the community             to educate the public about pertinent       continuously evolve as a business, are
but draw new customers to their store        health and wellness information.            a tribute to the pharmacy Foster built.
as well.
                                             Most recently, the pharmacy is planning     “Bill was always really good at thinking
 For example, Foster Drug added a            to implement a program that provides         outside the box,” Armsworthy said. “He
 section within the pharmacy called          bags with necessities for new parents        was never afraid, and the whole reason
“Community Connection” in which              when they fill a baby’s prescription         why we’re still here trying to do this is
 local residents are invited to share        for the first time, including diaper rash    that we want Bill’s legacy to live on.”
 handcrafted goods. Items lining the         cream, baby wipes and other
 store’s shelves include local honey,        must-have items.

                                                                                                Foster Drug added a section
                                                                                                within the pharmacy called
                                                                                               “Community Connection” in
                                                                                                which local residents share
                                                                                                handcrafted goods.
       For more information, visit Foster Drug Company’s Facebook page.

                                                                                                                   good medicine 2018   12
Technician Product Verification
                     						 frees
                     						 pharmacists
                     						 to
                                 FOCUS                                             on patient care

                                                                               How does the new                        What did you see happen
                                                                               Technician Product                      with error rates?
                                                                               Verification practice
                     As the healthcare                                         model improve the
                                                                                                                       As part of this practice model, there
                                                                                                                       was also a research study involved
                     landscape continues                                       workflow at a pharmacy?                 where we tracked safety/error rates
                                                                                                                       and also pharmacist time. What we
                     to evolve, the need for                                   Technician Product Verification
                                                                               completely changes the                  found was that the error rate either
                                                                                                                       stayed the same or improved a bit,
                     providers to take a more                                  workflow. We implemented a Drug
                                                                               Utilization Review (DUR) print          and pharmacist time spent in
                     active role in their                                      queue so that all prescriptions (new,   dispensing greatly decreased—
                                                                                                                       down to 30 percent in one of our
                                                                               refill, with and without DUR), go
                     patients’ medication                                      into a verification queue prior to a    locations and 11 percent in the
                                                                                                                       other location. The pharmacists’
                     use has become                                            label printing. Only a pharmacist
                                                                               may approve a prescription from         time spent in patient care activities
                                                                                                                       greatly increased— up to 60 per-
                     increasingly apparent.                                    this queue and print the label.
                                                                               During this phase, the pharmacist       cent in one location and 84 percent
                                                                               performs the DUR, looks at              in the other location. Essentially, we
                                                                               adherence and appropriateness,          found that technicians using
                     For Cheri Schmit, improving patient care and              and makes notes for questions or        technology to perform product
                     developing a path to transition from a traditional        information to gather from the          verification was just as safe as a
                     pharmacy to one that better meets the needs               patient. I think that our pharmacists   pharmacist doing a final check, and
                     of customers is essential. Schmit, the 2017               are doing a much more complete          it allowed the pharmacist to shift
                     International Clinical Innovation Award winner            and thorough DUR because it is          their time from dispensing activities
                     for Medicine Shoppe and Medicap Pharmacy                  not happening in conjunction with       to direct patient care activities.
                     franchisees, implemented a new practice model             product verification. This allows
                     that completely changed the workflow for her              for a stand-alone task of DUR and
                     pharmacy and ultimately improved accuracy.
cardinalhealth.com

                                                                               I think changes the pharmacist’s
                     However, the director of clinical pharmacy at GRX         thought process. They can move
                     Holdings, LLC, in West Des Moines, Iowa, also found       beyond “is this the correct drug that
                     that the new system allowed technicians to achieve        is prescribed” to “is this drug
                     the same amount of accuracy - allowing pharma-            appropriate for this patient, does it
                     cists to shift their time from dispensing activities to   meet guidelines for therapy, is the
                     direct patient care activities.                           patient adherent, is it safe and
                                                                               effective, are there gaps in
Innovative Ideas

                     Good Medicine spoke with Schmit about what this
                                                                               therapy, and do they need
                     new model means for the future of pharmacy.
                                                                               immunizations/labs?”

13
What must pharmacies do to find success with                      How can embracing available technologies
this practice model?                                              become easier?
They must have well-trained and motivated technicians. The         To provide enhanced services, you must have efficient
technicians will likely need to take the lead in managing the      technology tools to help identify, screen, document, verify,
dispensing workflow. They also need additional training and        etc. And the technologies and vendor platforms are becoming
certification and there must be good communication and             very valuable. We have been able to significantly decrease our
trust among the pharmacy team. Technicians, especially             Direct and Indirect Renumeration (DIR) fees and improve our
certified-checking, may need to shift and delegate some            performance metrics by utilization of technology tools and
tasks to non-checking technicians or even support staff when       resources. I think when pharmacies see the impact this can
appropriate. Workflow will need to change, and I think             have both on their practice and on their patient outcomes, the
technology is a must. We utilize bar code technology with         “why use available technologies” becomes very apparent.
both our pharmacy management system and our dispensing             Embracing technology is always difficult and no one likes
software. We had to physically rearrange our pharmacy to           change. My advice would be to pick a platform that integrates
make for a more efficient workflow and add an additional           with your dispensing software and with as many other
computer station. We also added Chromebooks to our                 platforms that you use as possible. If you can access one
counseling rooms to improve education and documentation            platform for multiple tasks, then it is certainly much easier. You
abilities while meeting with patients.                             have one place to go for everything, so you get familiar with
A pharmacist’s thought process has to change. Pharmacists,         the platform and you tend to have it open and available all the
by habit, have developed a thought process where we are            time since you are using it for everything.
concerned with verification of product and rightfully so.         The other thing is start small and build. If you are going to
Now pharmacists have to switch their thought processes to         use technology to identify patients for pneumonia vaccine
enhanced care and services. A documentation system also is a      or set up a sync-fill program, start with a few patients. Get
must. Many technology vendors are racing to help fill this gap/   familiar with the software and process and then gradually
need and there are several available, but you must have a way     build as you become more adept and work out your policies
to document patient interaction and encounters as well as         and procedures.
collaboration with other healthcare providers.

                                                                                                       Cheri Schmit, GRX Holdings, LLC

      For more information, check out pharmacy.iowa.gov.

                                                                                                                   good medicine 2018    14
solution
                     spotlight
                     Pharmacy owners share how Cardinal Health solutions are
                     creating opportunities and improving patient care.

                     TelePharm: The changing face of pharmacy
cardinalhealth.com

                     Point-of-Care Testing: The new wave of reaching clients

                     Inventory Manager: More than an out-of-the-box program

                     Medication adherence: Tools for success

                     Pharmacy Transition Services: Keeping pharmacies independent

                     Securing your pharmacy: What you should be doing
Solution Spotlight

                     Order Express: Optimize SOURCESM Generic purchasing

                     Pharmacy Marketing Advantage: Let’s get digital

                     Conversion conundrum: Who are your consumers?

15
The changing face
of pharmacy
How telepharmacies
improve patient
adherence and
bottom line

                     Nearly 68 percent of physician visits involve drug therapy, and
                     according to the Centers for Disease Control, 72 percent of
                     hospital outpatient visits result in a prescription.

                     Yet, ensuring patients fill and adhere to those prescriptions is
                     a widespread concern in the medical community.

                     To meet the needs of underserved populations and address
                     adherence concerns, pharmacy owners across the country
                     are using TelePharm’s cloud-based software to open new
                     telepharmacies that operate like traditional pharmacies, except
                     the pharmacist reviews prescriptions and counsels patients from
                     a remote location.

                     From the urban landscape of Chicago to the rural countryside
                     dotted with small towns, three Illinois pharmacists share their
                     stories of how telepharmacies have benefitted both their
                     communities and their own business models.

                                                                     good medicine 2018   16
The changing face of pharmacy, cont.

                                    An evolving field                                        “We are now looking at a couple other locations
                                                                                              that are in rural areas to see if it makes sense for us
                                    Age is no barrier for pharmacist                          to go into those areas,” Colee said.
                                    who embraces change                                      Although Colee wondered how difficult it would be
                                                                                             to learn the technology associated with operating a
                                    A pharmacist for nearly 45 years, Dale Colee has
                                                                                             telepharmacy, he says the system is very easy.
                                    seen the field of pharmacy evolve.
                                                                                             “Telepharmacy is cutting edge,” he said. “It’s added
                                    At 68 years old, his advice for his counterparts is to
                                                                                              to our identity in the community.”
                                    embrace change, especially in the area of technology.
                                    After a 340B community health improvement
                                    center approached Colee about opening a
                                                                                             Even in urban areas,
                                    pharmacy inside its new Decatur, Ill., clinic to         telepharmacy is popular
                                    help encourage more adherence among patients,
                                    he began researching telepharmacy.                       It may be just minutes from the heart of Chicago,
                                                                                             but the need for a telepharmacy is undeniable in
                                    As owner of Dale’s Southlake Pharmacy in Decatur,
                                                                                             the Bellwood neighborhood.
                                    Ill., and Colee’s Corner Drugs in neighboring
                                                                                             Though located in the middle of an urban sector, a
                                    Forsyth, Colee knew the location was perfect, but
                                                                                             telepharmacy has the potential to serve a portion
                                    he wanted opening a new pharmacy to make
                                                                                             of the community who may live close by, but still
                                    financial sense as well. It has, he says.
                                                                                             face challenges in filling their prescriptions.
                                                                                             To address this need, Tushar Mehta, who owns

                     “   The wave of the future is, no doubt,
                         technology. I’ve seen a lot of different
                                                                                             two independent pharmacies nearby, opened
                                                                                             a telepharmacy inside a local health clinic to
                                                                                             provide convenient dispensing at the point of care.
                         things over the years, but embracing                                “In the Chicago area, parking can be an issue for

                         technology is how you keep up                                        residents, so not everyone has access to a car,” he said.
                                                                                             “Time is a very big concern for patients, especially for
                         with it. If you want to survive as a                                 parents during the winter months when Chicago sees
                                                                                              greater amounts of snow and rain. These conditions
                         pharmacy in today’s environment,
                                                        “                                     make it very difficult for patients to go to the clinic

                         you have to do this.                                                 and then go elsewhere for their medications.”
                                                                                             Because most patients served at the telepharmacy
                                                                                             are children, Mehta knows the importance of
                                    “The fact that we have a telepharmacy has allowed        providing convenience for families.
                                     us to cost effectively increase the number of
                                                                                             Serving about 40 patients a day from the clinic
                                     prescriptions we are doing with very low overhead
                                                                                             and an additional 50 to 60 who refill their
                                     and with no additional pharmacist needed on the
                                                                                             prescriptions, the telepharmacy is staffed by a
                                     payroll,” he said.
                                                                                             certified technician. Though it reduces payroll and
                      —Dale Colee   The neighboring clinic, which sees about 18,000          allows someone to own a pharmacy without high
cardinalhealth.com

                                    patients a year, serves both adults and children         overhead costs, Mehta says it took some time for
                                    and includes OB-GYN and radiology services.              customers to acclimate to a new style of service.
                                    “They asked us to put one onsite as a resource           “It was a different way of accepting there is a
                                     for the community to reduce barriers for people          pharmacy without an in-person pharmacist,” he
                                     trying to get their medications,” Colee said. “If        said. “People came up and would ask if it was even
                                     they walk right by the pharmacy, they have a             legal. Now after three years of being open, people
                                     greater potential to fill their prescriptions.”          don’t ask that question. People are amazed with
Solution Spotlight

                                    Since opening Colee’s Community Pharmacy, the             the fact that you can go to a cubicle and talk with
                                    family-owned group of pharmacies has increased            a pharmacist on screen.”
                                    its business by about 30 percent.

17
“   Patients go to the doctor, but they                                 technology in a new way wasn’t always easy. Several
                                                                        customers assumed they would have to drop off
    may not make a second trip to get                                   their prescriptions and come back in 24 hours so
                                                                        that the prescriptions could be filled elsewhere and
    their medications. With telepharmacy,                               transferred back to the Atwood location.
    this service discourages the patient                                Working with the clinic next door, Falk began
                                                                        an education campaign that included direct
    from doing this sort of thing. They                                 mailings, as well as encouraging clinic staff to
    get the care they need and go home         “                        clear up any misperceptions.
                                                                        He also advises those thinking of opening a
    with the whole package.                                             telepharmacy to get the community behind
                                                                        them first.

                Rural telepharmacies fill void,                         “Get yourself in front of a city council or town hall
                                                                         meeting, and before you open or shortly after you
                lead to growth                                           open, hold an open house so people can come in
                                                                         and learn how a telepharmacy operates,” he said.
                After noticing the increasing number of deliveries
                                                                        “Most people who have been taking prescriptions
                David Falk and his team at Sav Mor Pharmacies
                                                                         for a long time don’t want any hiccups.”
—Tushar Mehta   were making to the small community of Atwood,
                Ill., Falk recognized potential.                        Once Falk did that, he began seeing an uptick
                                                                        in business.
                “We saw a market that was like a desert that wasn’t
                                                                        “We were kind of fearful that the older population
                 being fulfilled,” he said.
                                                                         would be a big stumble point because of the
                Up until his telepharmacy opened, the rural              technology, but it really wasn’t,” he said. “We have
                community of 1,200 people hadn’t seen a                  a private consultation room where the monitor is.
                pharmacy in town for more than 15 years.                 Most of them knew the pharmacist from the host
                “People were driving 10 miles each way to get            store, so they were already a familiar face and it put
                 a prescription filled,” Falk said. “By adding a         them at ease.”
                 telepharmacy there, we knew we would probably
                 pull some business out of the pharmacy closest
                 to Atwood, but we also knew there was a lot of
                 business in Atwood that we could tap into.”
                With a health clinic operated by Kirby Medical
                Center already located in the village, it seemed like
                the perfect fit to open a telepharmacy next door.
                “The village of Atwood really stepped up to the
                 plate and made a building available to us and
                 pushed through permits,” Falk said. “Not only has
                 it helped us as a pharmacy, but it has helped the
                 community and the clinic next door.”
                That forged relationship then led Falk to open
                an additional telepharmacy inside another
                Kirby clinic in the region. Falk now operates five
                telepharmacies, all in rural areas.
                “It’s been a snowball effect,” he said.
                Though about 1,100 prescriptions are filled per
                month at Falk’s first telepharmacy location in                   For more information, visit
                Atwood, changing customers’ perceptions of using                 cardinalhealth.com/telepharm.

                                                                                                               good medicine 2018   18
Health and wellness
                     destinations
                                    Point-of-Care
                                    Testing allows
                                     pharmacies
                                   to diagnose flu,
                                       strep on
                                       the spot

                        It’s a pattern pharmacist Sally Salib                  The process is easy, Salib says. Using treatment
                                                                               protocols that outline patient screening eligibility,
                        sees every year — ill patients coming
                                                                               testing and medication initiation, she swabs a
                        to the pharmacy looking for relief                     customer if that person is displaying classic influenza
                        from severe symptoms.                                  or strep symptoms. If the test comes back positive,
                                                                               she contacts the customer’s physician immediately.
                        Without definitive proof, Salib could not know with
                                                                               The physician then sends a prescription back to the
                        certainty what ailment was causing their suffering.
                                                                               pharmacy for the appropriate treatment, such as
                        That’s why the owner of Briargrove Pharmacy in         Tamiflu or an antibiotic.
                        Houston, Texas, implemented the Cardinal Health
                                                                               “The doctor’s office usually gets back to us right
                        Point-of-Care-Testing Program, which provides
                                                                                away, normally within 30 minutes while the
                        tools and resources that allow retail pharmacies
cardinalhealth.com

                                                                                customer is still at the pharmacy,” Salib said.
                        to offer flu and strep testing to their customers on
                        the spot.                                              This rapid diagnostics practice ensures Briargrove
                                                                               Pharmacy fills the prescription.
                        The program positions pharmacies to go
                        beyond interpreting, dispensing and counseling         “By adding this service in our pharmacy, we have
                        on medication, to become true patient care              attracted new customers,” Salib said. “Our customers
                        destinations — ultimately promoting business            know we are here as a community pharmacy, and
                        sustainability and providing increased access to        we can help them more than any other pharmacy.”
Solution Spotlight

                        healthcare in their communities.                       In fact, Salib said she didn’t face any real
                                                                               challenges to get Point-of-Care Testing up and
                                                                               running in her pharmacy.

19
“ benefits
   As an independent pharmacy, this is really adding strong
            for our patients because it is increasing access to                                                 “
          healthcare and helping keep our community healthy.
                                       — Sally Salib, Briargrove Pharmacy

Prior to implementing the service, Salib did some          discovered this first-hand, when after advertising
of her own research to gauge physicians’ reactions,        the program on Facebook, patients began coming
by contacting a few physicians from whom she fills         in on their own, inquiring about the tests.
prescriptions. The feedback was positive.                  Although Salib must call or fax physicians to report
“They’re happy because they’re able to help more           positive test results in order to receive and fill a
 patients,” she said. “Some doctors don’t even do          prescription, she says it’s part of the job.
 the flu test. This is a good thing because the doctors    “As pharmacists, we work with physicians all day
 who aren’t doing the tests are sending patients to us.”    long as part of the service,” she said. “It’s worth
In just two months during the most recent flu and           doing that for someone who has the flu.”
cold season, pharmacists at Briargrove performed           She advises those considering Point-of-Care
70 tests. Continuing education courses and training        Testing services to “just be brave and do it.”
videos through the Point-of-Care Testing Program
provided the knowledge and tools necessary to              “As an independent pharmacy, this is really adding
integrate the service into the pharmacy’s normal            strong benefits for our patients because it is
daily operations.                                           increasing access to healthcare and helping keep our
                                                            community healthy,” Salib said. “It’s easy to get started,
“This seemed intimidating at first, but it’s very easy      and many primary care practitioners are supportive.”
 to learn,” Salib said.
At a time when consumer-driven healthcare is at
the forefront, this program helps meet the demand                  For more information, visit
for increased access for convenient healthcare                     cardinalhealth.com/poctesting.
services in the retail pharmacy setting. Salib

                                                                                                               good medicine 2018   20
BETTER
                         inventory management
                         Cardinal Health™ Inventory Manager creates
                         balance, helps pharmacies navigate 340B orders

                                                                      For independent pharmacist                      The program also has the ability to
                                                                                                                      map 340B orders — a key benefit for
                                                                      Kevin Duane, better managing
                                                                                                                      Duane because his pharmacy dispenses
                                                                      his inventory is essential in                   340B-eligible prescriptions. 340B is a
                                                                      improving business metrics.                     government-regulated program that
                                                                                                                      requires drug manufacturers to provide
                                                                      That’s why he turned to Cardinal Health™        outpatient drugs to certain covered
                                                                      Inventory Manager (CIM) to help create          entities, such as hospitals, at a reduced
                                                                      a more balanced inventory at Panama             price. The program provides low-cost
                                                                      Pharmacy in Jacksonville, Fla.—a move           medication for safety net providers who
                                                                      that has helped him increase cash flow,         use it to further their mission to serve
                                                                      improve patient service levels and              vulnerable patient populations.
                                    Kevin Duane                       reduce outdated products.
                                                                                                                      As a contract pharmacy, Panama
                                  Panama Pharmacy                     CIM is a web-based program that                 Pharmacy dispenses the eligible
                                                                      helps pharmacies manage prescription            prescriptions from its retail inventory
                                                                      inventory. The program combines                 and receives replacement inventory
                                                                     “just in time” replenishment, driven             once a full bottle of a specific item is
                                                                      by automated order points and                   gone. Contract pharmacies typically
                                                                      sophisticated reporting capabilities,           do not know when the replacement
                                                                      with dedicated inventory consultation           inventory is coming, often leading to
                                                                      and support.                                    inventory swell.

                         5      FACTS
                                You didn’t know about CIM
                                                                                            2   You have a support team — including our IT team
                                                                                                which is part of Fuse, the Cardinal Health commerical
                                                                                                technologies and innovation center.
                                                                                                How is it that we can customize settings to meet your inventory
                     Cardinal Health Inventory™ Manager (CIM) is built                          management goals? We have a CIM-specific team here to
cardinalhealth.com

                     to help manage your prescription inventory, but                            help! In addition to your sales rep and pharmacy operations
                                                                                                consultant (POC) in the field, you have a corporate-based team
                     did you know that it’s much more than an “out-of-
                                                                                                of inventory experts here for you.
                     the-box” program? Here are five surprising
                     things about CIM that make it a far more
                     robust solution for your pharmacy.                                     3   The audit list isn’t just comprised of random items —
                                                                                                it has logic behind it and has helped to identify theft.
Solution Spotlight

                                                                                                One of the keys to maintaining a clean inventory is to
                     1   We can customize settings such as days-inventory-                      complete ongoing audit (cycle) counts. Each day, CIM provides
                         on-hand (DIOH).                                                        a list of items that should be counted. The goal is to facilitate
                         CIM’s standard settings help you manage your inventory more            counting through your entire inventory several times per year
                         effectively; but, we can also tailor the system to your specific       and to help point out items that continually seem to be “off.”
                         needs. Want to increase on-hands of popular generics while
                         decreasing seldom-used brands? We can do that!
21
Duane has helped prevent this swell because CIM maps              Q What are key features you rely on most heavily?
   340B orders to the pharmacy’s account. 340B items that
                                                                        A: We use the ordering function daily. It gathers pricing data
   have been put on order for shipment by the covered
                                                                           from our buying group and we can use the “analyze cart
   entity get taken into account as CIM builds the daily
                                                                           function” to make sure we are buying in the most efficient
   demand-based order.
                                                                           way in regards to our buying group matrix. It also takes into
   Good Medicine spoke with Duane, who has incorporated CIM                account rebates on generics, so we are able to compare net
   into his pharmacy’s day-to-day operations for four years, about         to net with our buying group in real time. We manage the
   how it has benefitted his business and helped mitigate his              excess inventory report weekly and I see a direct reflection
   340B inventory concerns, as well as what key features he relies         of that in our decreased wholesaler bills and increased cash
   on daily.                                                               on hand.

Q What made you decide to use CIM in your pharmacy? Q What impact has your 340B affiliation had on
   What features and benefits of CIM made it impossible                 your business?
   to pass up?                                                          A: 340B has allowed us to serve a wider scope of patients
                                                                           than we would have been able to before. We are able to
   A: When I purchased the store it had CIM in place, but I                work closely with the 340B physicians to discover creative
      looked heavily at alternatives to ensure we were dealing             solutions to better cater to that specific patient group.
      with the best solution. CIM’s ability to manage multiple
      wholesalers and its ability to quickly display excess          Q How has CIM helped mitigate your 340B
      inventory for return made it an indispensable part of             inventory concerns?
      the pharmacy.
                                                                        A: Since CIM receives data from our traditional account, our
Q How has CIM helped your business?                                        buying group account and our 340B account, we can use it
                                                                           as a true “dashboard” and see how each piece fits together
   A: It has helped improve cash flow by letting us manage                 in a real-time basis. 340B replenishment shipments can
      our inventory on a “just in time” basis. Our turns are               be tracked and compared to dispenses, which ensures our
      higher than ever, so we have more predictable cash flow.             340B inventory is reconciled. Without CIM, we would have
      Excess inventory is definitely reduced using its reporting           to do this manually by hand and it would take quite some
      functions, and we have fewer drugs expiring because we               time. It is a real time saver in that regard.
      can stay on top of slow/no moving items.

                                                                               For more information, visit cardinalhealth.com/CIM.

    4     We can add a 340B account to reduce inventory swell.
          One of the pains often felt as a 340B pharmacy is the
          inventory swell that comes from receiving the replacement
          bottles without warning. CIM has the ability to map 340B
          orders to your account, taking the ordered 340B items into
          consideration as it builds your daily demand-based order,
          thus limiting inventory swell.

    5    You can manage inventory from secondary
         suppliers, too.
          We get it. There are just some products that you have to buy
          from sources other than Cardinal Health. You may not buy
          all of your products here but you can track them here. CIM
          enables you to manage prescription inventory from
          all of your suppliers in one place.

                                                                                                                         good medicine 2018   22
medication adherence

                     5 ways to improve
                     medication adherence
                                            Understand why your patients aren’t taking

                        1                   their medications. Adherence is a multidimensional
                                            phenomenon, in which multiple cultural and practical
                                            factors affect a patient’s behavior and capacity to adhere
                                            to treatment.

                                                                                                2
                                 Educate your patients on their
                                 medications. Show patients how their
                                 medications can improve their quality of life.

                            3
                                                 Tailor a solution. Depending on each patient’s
                                                 needs, you may need to tailor a solution to
                                                 address specific adherence obstacles.

                          Provide workflow solutions that address
                          all of your patients’ needs. Not all of your
                          patients will face the same adherence obstacles,
                          but workflow solutions can help in various ways.                4
cardinalhealth.com

                                             Market your pharmacy as a healthcare
                                             destination. Help more patients improve
Solution Spotlight

                             5               adherence by promoting your pharmacy and
                                             the services you provide to your community.

23
medication adherence

Dispill® delivers
a dose of
independence
After Gabriel Guijarro began offering Dispill®
compliance packaging at his Lufkin, Texas,
pharmacy in 2015, he immediately saw just
how valuable the service was to patients.
Hearing from nurses at home health agencies who routinely
                                                                packaging worked. They also found the most
came in contact with patients with disorganized or missing
                                                                success in targeting home health agencies.
medications, Guijarro realized he could help.
                                                                “Oftentimes, a nurse would visit a patient’s house
He now has more than 200 patients using Dispill in their own
                                                                 and find out that several of the prescriptions needed
homes, helping customers with what they want most—to
                                                                 to be refilled, and the patient would have to rely on
remain independent.
                                                                 a family member to pick up the missing drugs and
                                                                 then revisit that patient later,” Guijarro said. “So, the
                                                                 administrators at our local home health agencies
          How it works                                           immediately recognized the value that Dispill could
          Providing a safer way to take medicine, Dispill        offer in eliminating the amount of time nurses spend
          packaging provides prescribed medication in an         sorting out medications and re-visiting customers.”
          all-inclusive blister pack—eliminating the need for
          pillboxes and single-dose bingo cards.
         This, in turn, decreases the risk of patients mixing   How to expand
         up medication or forgetting the time of day they       Looking to the future, Hargroue says the next step
         have to take them.                                     is to target assisted living facilities.
         “Dispill packs are easy to fill once you have a        “There is an owner who is building a new 50-room
          system in place,” Guijarro said. “The pack is easy     facility in our community and he is a proponent
          to read, organized, includes the pharmacy contact      of compliance packaging,” he said. “So there
          information and I can display my logo.”                is a potential to bring in 50 new patients to our
                                                                 pharmacy on Dispill!”
                                                                Other ideas for expansion include reaching out
          How to market                                         to adult daycare centers, partnering with county
         As owner and pharmacist at The Medicine Shoppe,        agencies that focus on keeping seniors independent
         Guijarro knew he had a great service members of his    and marketing Dispill to family members and
         community needed. How to create awareness about        caregivers who will have better peace of mind that
         the service, however, would take some strategy.        their loved ones are taking the correct medications.
          Guijarro hired Johnny Hargroue as the pharmacy’s
          specialty sales executive, who then targeted
                                                                For more information, visit
          local doctor’s offices and demonstrated how the
                                                                cardinalhealth.com/dispill.

                                                                                                       good medicine 2018    24
medication adherence

                     Improving patient
                     adherence and
                     the bottom line
                     Simple steps can lead to big outcomes when
                     utilizing Reimbursement Consulting Services
                     Today, 145 million                                 Here’s how:
                     Americans suffer from                             •    When on the RCS dashboard, go into                       Out of every
                     chronic disease, yet                                   Individual PDC measures. Set to Medicare                 100 prescriptions
                                                                            Patients/Rolling Year.                                   written, only*:
                     only one-third take
                     their medications                                 •    Review the patients who are 70-79 percent

                                                                                                                                     50-70%
                                                                            on the PDC measures. These are the
                     as prescribed.                                         patients who are most likely just one fill
                     This causes a ripple effect—                           away from being compliant, Kaempf says.                  are filled by a pharmacy
                     affecting the entire cost of                           Using tools like auto refill or medication

                                                                                                                                     48-66%
                     care. When patients adhere to                          synchronization can easily help improve a
                     prescribed medication; however,                        patient’s adherence.
                     both clinical and financial
                                                                       •    For patients who are at 40 to 60 percent                 are actually picked up
                     outcomes improve. That includes
                                                                            on their PDC measures, simply reviewing                  by the patient
                     performance scores that ultimately
                                                                            dispenses for obvious errors can make
                     affect a store’s bottom line and
                     direct and indirect remuneration
                     (DIR) fees.
                                                                            a significant difference. “If a patient is
                                                                            getting a 30-day supply every 60 days,
                                                                            the pharmacist should talk to the patient
                                                                                                                                     25-30%
                                                                                                                                     are taken properly
                     Lisa Kaempf with Cardinal Health                       to confirm how they are taking the
                     Reimbursement Consulting
                     Services, says pharmacists know
                     that it is important to work with
                                                                       •
                                                                            medication,” she said.
                                                                            If the patient is not taking the prescription            15-20%
                                                                                                                                     are refilled
                                                                            according to directions, the pharmacist
cardinalhealth.com

                     patients to be adherent to their
                                                                            should call the doctor to get a new
                     medications, but struggle with
                                                                            prescription. “By targeting that patient, it’s
                     how to fit that into their daily
                                                                            a quick win,” Kaempf said. “They go from
                     workflow. However, improving
                                                                            a non-compliant patient to a compliant
                     just one patient’s adherence can
                                                                            patient on the list.”
                     make a significant difference in
                     increasing prescription counts
                     and decreasing DIR fees.
Solution Spotlight

                              For more information, visit cardinalhealth.com/rcs.

                     *Source: Ruppar, Todd. (2017, February 21). Overcoming Barriers to Medication Adherence for Chronic Diseases.
25                   Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/grand-rounds/pp/2017/20170221-medication-adherence.html.
medication adherence

 New Action Center within
 RCS prioritizes the patient,
 workflow
Reimbursement Consulting Services (RCS) will                       In addition to providing patient-level opportunity
                                                                   information through the Action Center, RCS also offers
now include the new Action Center, which will
                                                                   dedicated pharmacy advisors who help locate the most
incorporate a prioritized patient and workflow                     optimal opportunities that are important to an individual
that will make it much easier for pharmacies                       business at that point in time.
to identify revenue opportunities and
communicate with patients.
“We have significantly enhanced RCS to allow customers to
 quickly focus on clinical opportunities and communicate
 effectively with patients,” said Mike Zabonik, senior manager
 for Product and Solutions Marketing.
This patient work queue will provide adherence workflow
improvements, as well as provide other opportunities such as
customer trends, identification of patients with immunization
needs and improved direct and indirect remuneration (DIR)
estimation tools.
The goal is to improve overall store performance and make it
easier and more efficient for pharmacists to use this tool.

How to improve a patient’s adherence
Every patient’s needs are different, and each patient may respond better to one solution over another. Here are a variety of
services that help improve patient adherence so that you can best meet each patient’s individual needs.

         Auto refill and refill reminders:          Compliance packaging:                       Prescription assistance
         Remind patients they need to               Deliver prescribed medication               programs:
         refill their prescriptions or that         to individuals in an all-inclusive          Offer free or discounted medicine
         their prescriptions have been auto         blister pack.                               utilizing a drug company
         refilled — via telephone, web,             Medication Therapy                          program or a discount program.
         app, text, email or social media.          Management (MTM):                           Home/worksite delivery:
         Medication synchronization:                Provide MTM services to help                Offer same-day delivery services,
         Consolidate and coordinate a               patients get the best benefits              for eligible prescriptions, to
         patient’s prescriptions so they            from their medications by actively          patients’ homes or places
         can all be refilled on the same            managing drug therapy and                   of work.
         day each month.                            by identifying, preventing and
                                                    resolving medication-related
                                                    problems.

                                                                                                                 good medicine 2018   26
Pharmacy Transition Services

                     Keeping
                     pharmacies
                     INDEPENDENT
cardinalhealth.com

                     “ We   really consider Cardinal Health our strategic partner.
                       It really is top-to-bottom help.
                                                               “
Solution Spotlight

                       — Kevin Faris, independent pharmacist

27
How one team takes
on the challenges of
buying and selling
Life is full of transition, even with the                         From start to finish, Pharmacy Transition Services team
                                                                  members work with buyers and sellers to provide
ownership of your pharmacy.
                                                                  consultation to ensure each transition is completed
“To our estimation, just over 1,000 independent                   successfully. They specialize in analyzing pharmacy
 pharmacies transition each year by selling to a                  valuations, on the buy side and sell side, to ensure
 chain, closing their doors or transitioning to another           fair market value. Team members also provide
 independent owner,” says Judd Wilstead, director of              consultation, align buyers and sellers, offer financing
 pharmacy acquisition on the Pharmacy Transition                  options and purchasing structures, arrange legal
 Services team for Cardinal Health. “Over the last 10 years,      counsel when necessary and develop succession
 our Pharmacy Transition Services team has focused on             planning and exit strategies.
 helping independent pharmacies remain independent.               Most recently, Faris worked with this team to purchase
 We have completed nearly 2,000 pharmacy valuations               seven locations in San Diego. Logistically, selling or
 and over 700 transitions. We can help you form a game            purchasing one store can be complex. Seven stores
 plan to ensure a successful transition.”                         compounds that complexity.
While some independent pharmacy owners have a                     “This was a very large purchase,” Faris said. “Financial
desire to acquire other pharmacies or sell theirs to               help, cost of goods help and everything that Cardinal
fellow independent owners, navigating what can be a                Health does, we needed. We had to dot our i’s and cross
complicated process is difficult for someone without               our t’s because this was such a large transaction.”
acquisition experience.
                                                                  Prior to the San Diego acquisition, Faris also worked with
“Most pharmacy owners went to pharmacy school to learn            Wilstead and his team on transactions in Nevada, Hawaii,
 how to be great pharmacists. They weren’t necessarily            Idaho and Alaska.
 educated on how to buy and sell businesses,” Wilstead
                                                                  “We really consider Cardinal Health our strategic partner,”
 said. “We are here to help every step of the way.”
                                                                   Faris said. “When we look at a store or stores, without
When Kevin Faris, an independent pharmacist on the                 their help, we wouldn’t be able to transition some of
West Coast, began to expand the number of pharmacies               these, and it’s not just financing or valuation. It really is
he operated so his team could better compete in his                top-to-bottom help, even when you get to the actual
ever-evolving local market, he realized he needed help             acquisition and it’s passed to the local sales team. It’s
to ensure the acquisitions went smoothly.                          getting accounts set up and getting everything ready
“We want to grow, but grow responsibly, because at the             for the new owners to take over.”
 same time, it can get overwhelming,” Faris said. “If you
 aren’t taking the right steps, it can come back and bite you.”
The Pharmacy Transition Services program is focused
on helping those who are thinking about succession
planning, retiring or buying another pharmacy.

       For more information, visit cardinalhealth.com/pharmacytransitionservices.

                                                                                                                    good medicine 2018   28
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