We’ve created a blog section on pharmacyquality.com for posts related to managing performance information and other general quality-related topics. If you have common questions or suggested topics, we’d love to hear from you! We hope you enjoy the topics and possibly even learn a thing or two about performance measurement, EQuIPPTM, or the broad topic of pharmacy quality.
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Front Door Service
The idea of having medicine delivered to a patient’s house isn’t new. Many independent community pharmacies have been delivering medications to houses and assisted living facilities for years, and chain pharmacies now offer this same service in same day, next-day, two-day, and standard shipping formats. One important reason for this service is that pharmacists can continue improving medication adherence and patient outcomes, even when that patient might not be able to physically visit the pharmacy. Delivery is an excellent solution for many housebound patients in receiving their medication. If your pharmacy is considering prescription delivery, or wanting to re-evaluate its delivery...
When to Begin Your Immunization Push
August is National Immunization Awareness Month and a great time to begin your promotion of in-pharmacy vaccinations… but wait, that’s only one month out of the year. Most pharmacists are giving immunizations all year round, so why the push in August? Yes, influenza vaccine usually ships late July and early August. Pharmacies are also eager to get a jump on immunization season, and it ties in great with National Immunization Month. It also ties in with “Back to School” for traditional school calendars and signals the end of summer. Many pharmacies take the initiative to book screenings in early summer with...
Shedding Light on Summertime Medication Adherence
Increased sunshine during summer months usually encourages outdoor activity, inspires summer vacations and brings on a potential decrease in regular patient visits at your pharmacy location. Yet seeing your patients less in-store shouldn’t mean a decrease in communications. If anything, it means it is time to ramp up text messaging reminders and physically make phone calls to your patients. This is a chance to be proactive: remind patients of the importance of refilling their medications and review medication instructions. Let’s shed some light on summertime medication adherence and take a closer look at what to review with would-be travelers: Medication Supplies- Whether...
Improving Adherence through Medication Packaging
The pill bottle is a pharmacist’s standard medication delivery container, effective in holding a large amount of medicine. When given to the patient, it’s up to the patient to remember when, how many and why to take their medication. Even when directions are clear on the label, factors like patient forgetfulness and bottle spills can cause medication adherence to suffer. Pharmacists can improve the quality of medication use by offering other packaging solutions. Packaging options include: Blister packaging- seals medications in sheets or cards and can organize multiple doses of medicine by time of day and day of week. Senior patients will...
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