The study finds that patients are more likely to pick up their prescriptions at automated pharmacy kiosks and lockers.
Automated pharmacy kiosk services offer relief for pharmacy congestion. When pharmacy lines are too long patients, tend to turn away. Patients want to be able to pick up their prescriptions when their schedule allows. When prescriptions go without being picked up, larger issues for patients and hospitals alike can arise. Medication adherence rates are always at the forefront of a pharmacy’s mind. By offering multiple pickup methods, pharmacies give their patients options to fit their needs. Where a 20-minute pharmacy line can turn patients away, an available kiosk might be more enticing to some. In fact, with average pickup times at just under a minute, ScriptCenter kiosks and lockers offer a convenient and secure prescription pickup option. For patients, this is an alluring option that caters to a variety of unique schedules.
Jan D. Hirsch, founding Dean of UCI’s School of Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Sciences and lead author of the study, worked directly with the Sharp Rees-Stealy pharmacy in San Diego. Sharp offers prescription pickup at a ScriptCenter kiosk system in conjunction with their pharmacy counter. Patients have the option to choose between the two pickup locations. Their automated kiosk is equipped with a series of auxiliary lockers to accommodate oversized and temperature-sensitive items with cold packs. A key find from the study came from the pickup rates. The Sharp Rees-Steely pharmacy fills 40,000 prescriptions a year. According to the data, “the kiosk could save the pharmacy $12,000 annually because patients picked up an additional 400 prescriptions per year”. Furthermore, the additional 400 prescriptions a year contribute to a large number of the medication adherence rates at Sharp. Overall, an incredibly positive result for the pharmacy.
Asteres ScriptCenter® kiosks and lockers enable secure and convenient prescription and OTC pickup for patients. ScriptCenter solutions improve patient medication adherence through expanded pharmacy hours and convenience and help pharmacy staff provide improved customer experience and spend more time on patient-focused clinical tasks.
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