KRISTINA Fox, winner of the 2024 Tasmanian Pharmacist of the Year, and Complete Care Pharmacy Rosny Park owner, has completely transformed her store to be a clinical healthcare destination.
The refurbished store is two years in the making and has triage desks manned by pharmacists who are on the floor, directing patients to either pharmacist 'pods' for consultations or a production area for fast dispensing by techs.
Complete Care pharmacies are all seamlessly serviced by a custom dispensing and organisational workflow software called Excipient, which was designed, and created by Fox, and her colleagues.
Excipient has many features but notably it can create digital baskets containing all script and appointment types from anywhere within the store, including self-serve stations, and is fully integrated with dispensing.
"Community pharmacists want to do more, and we are in a position to do more, but we don't know how we can do it when we are already struggling to keep up with the workload that we have day to day," Fox told Pharmacy Daily.
"The new software presents work to a pharmacist, dispensary technician or assistant at each dispense station that is only relevant to that person, while still enabling an overview of everything that is happening throughout the entire store."
Other than repeat scripts, every patient is taken into one of the consulting 'pods' rooms for a consultation with a pharmacist, to discuss issues such as new medication, minor ailment, medical certificates, and vaccinations.
The software can monitor current wait times in store and sends SMS when a script is ready.
"We are no longer having conversations about health in the middle of the pharmacy," said Fox, recalling her own experience with an unwell child and needing private space to discuss her concerns.
"Our model has enabled us to seemingly practice to our full scope, whilst also integrating other allied health professionals, including a nurse practitioner, so that we can offer complete health solutions to our patients," Fox explained.
"A robot even dispenses the medicines in the consulting rooms."
Fox revealed that the model has been financially rewarding and that Complete Care Pharmacy is now a brand that will be expanding into other communities across Australia.
"I am so proud of what has been achieved by our team.
"We have proven that community pharmacy can be practiced differently - not only is it professionally rewarding to practice this way but our patients love it - and that is the most important thing to me," Fox concluded. JG
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