Optimizing the Prescription Filling Process with LTC Pharmacy Software
Running a smooth, efficient, and error-free prescription filling process is essential for any pharmacy’s success. However, long-term care (LTC) pharmacies in particular are challenged with unique nuances that don’t come into play in the retail space.
Learn how LTC pharmacies can use automation technology to optimize the prescription filling process and provide better service for facility customers.
Prescription Filling Process: How It Differs for LTC Pharmacies
So what are key differences between the retail and LTC prescription filling processes? For starters, LTC pharmacies often accommodate a larger number of prescriptions per person and serve higher numbers of multi-med patients than most retail pharmacies.
Because of the high-volume nature of their work, LTC pharmacies usually prepare orders in batches to send them out on certain days each week to different facilities. This is a totally unique process with different nuances compared to simply filling and billing for one-off, individual orders. Unique challenges of the LTC prescription filling process include:
Toting, Labeling, and Delivery
With so many prescription orders being prepared at one time, it can be difficult to work efficiently and maintain a sense of organization. Because of the multi-step prescription filling workflow, it can be hard for LTC pharmacy staff to stay on top of where orders are in the process. Ensuring accuracy is also a challenge—at least without technology to automate manual tasks and reduce the risk of dispensing errors.
Facility-Centric Customization
LTC pharmacies often fulfill custom, facility-centric, or patient-centric requests that do not exist in the retail space. Each individual patient, facility, and department might have unique compliance packaging needs, which LTC pharmacies need to be able to accommodate with ease and efficiency. Meeting these needs is challenging without the help of technology. For example, some facilities may request compliance packaging, such as blister (or “bingo card”) packs and strip packs to boost medication adherence.
Medical Billing Complexities
Another LTC-specific nuance is medical billing: LTC pharmacies are prone to medical billing complexities because they often use multiple billing methods, such as split billing, nursing home billing, per diem billing, and more. Additionally, insurance audits and compliance are also challenging for LTC pharmacies without the right support.
Using Automation to Optimize the Prescription Filling Process
To overcome many of these challenges without increasing full-time employee (FTE) headcount or using additional resources, automation is key. LTC pharmacies can automate much of the prescription filling process, using software to:
Understand where each Rx is within the filling process: Custom pharmacy dashboards provide real-time visibility into all areas of the prescription workflow.
Create “set it and forget it” workflows for billing and insurance: With the right pharmacy software, staff can essentially set and forget medical billing and insurance workflows, mitigating compliance challenges and improving efficiency.
Streamline normal orders to accommodate last-minute requests: Using technology, LTC pharmacy staff can streamline normal medication orders to better accommodate last-minute requests, such as comfort meds for hospice patients.
Automate compliance packaging for facility requests: Automating compliance packaging is a great way to improve medication adherence without increasing heavy lifting for LTC pharmacy staff or bringing on additional FTEs.
Reduce dispensing errors to improve patient safety: Pharmacy management software reduces the risk of dispensing mistakes caused by human error, improving both medication accuracy and patient safety.
Gain better control over inventory, costs, and labor: Pharmacy technology offers better visibility, insight, and ultimately control over inventory, costs, and labor.
All of these benefits (and more) are made possible with the right LTC pharmacy software to automate manual, time-consuming prescription filling process tasks. That’s FrameworkTLC: FrameworkLTC is pharmacy management software designed to address the unique needs of pharmacies serving LTC facilities.
Download The Complete Guide to LTC Pharmacy Software to find out more about the differences between retail and LTC pharmacy software.