Automated Dispensing Machine (including verification) for retail

[baronzb]

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http://www.pharmacychoice.com/marketplace/pharmacy_automation.cfm

I saw a larger machine at Omnicare that only requires (by law) for the first script. Subsequent fills are verified, packaged, and dispensed by the robot. It seems only DUR and counseling are left for retail (verifying also was a large hospital staff job). What do posters think?

 

[RxStudentatUB]

Either pharmacy technicians or pharmacists (or a combination of both) are supposed to be affected. I think technicians will be hurt, a few others think pharmacists will slowly be waded away. In the end, my optimistic personality says the pharmacist will still be needed to supervise the product for errors - but who am I to say what's to happen in the future.

 

[BidingMyTime]

I think there will always be some pharmacists around, but not enough pharmacy jobs for all the pharmacist schools which keep opening up each year.

 

[baronzb]

That's what I'm thinking: at the omnicare facility, they had 5 verifiers on any shift, verifying one script per minute, all those, are gone. There may be one guy in a satelite office looking over ten facilities. There are less techs, in fact, other than feeding the machine and twisting IV bags, I don't see them doing much at Omnicare. Also, it appears there is an automated IV machine in France.

Hard to say how

 

[baronzb]

Also, if you look at Uber, the whole labor model is based on the old 1920s concept of 'dead time', meaning employees sit around the office without pay until an order to make a widget comes in.
Even though there is almost no down time in pharmacy, there is a few minutes to pinch here or there, where if stores/hospitals are severely in adequately staffed, remote sites could pick-up the slack. So even if 15% of verification remains, 100% of DUR and counseling, there could be, with the addition of more mail order and centralized, remote pharmacy employment, cause an inordinate double digit decline in pharmacy employment?

 

[panasoniku]

"Automation Designed by Pharmacists Like You"

And here, I am happy that I chose this specialty. Sorry guys.

On a side note, there is still going to be a LOT of upkeep and recordkeeping needing real pharmacists. And stocking. Walgreens has lots of Parata machines that fill and package. It still requires RPh verification. The upkeep and maintenance for these machines are extensive. This machine in the link only can do up to 60 fast-movers. However, it would help eliminate some of the tedious work that no one wants to do anyways...right?

 

[baronzb]

That seems like 2000 tech. The new robots are supposed to have a robot eye that verifies.