Pharmacy Management

The manager of a pharmacy is responsible for the running of various aspects of the pharmacy, such as finances, staff, marketing, sales, and customer service. Each of the areas of pharmacy management will be discussed in more detail in this article.

Staff

One of the core roles of a pharmacy management is to oversee the pharmacy staff and manage the people in order to maintain positive work relations and results.

There are several different types of pharmacy staff, including pharmacists, pharmacy assistants and pharmacy technicians. Each of these roles are vital in the running of the pharmacy, which should be communicated by the manager.

For example, it is a legal requirement that there is always at least one licensed pharmacist present at all times when the store is open. Pharmacy management should, therefore, ensure that the working roster for staff always allows for this.

Staff conflict or discussions about the pharmacy should also involve the pharmacy management. Conflict is a normal aspect of any organization and can be beneficial for people to expand their horizon of thought, possibly leading to new opportunities or changes.

It is useful for pharmacy managers to engage in conversations with staff and enable conflict resolution in a positive way. This also helps to improve the working environment and overall contentment of staff.

Finances

It is usually the manager of a pharmacy who keeps all finances in order, including:

• Accounts
• Payments to suppliers
• Insurance payments
• Salaries and wages
• Daily proceeds

While the cash flow is recorded daily, the profit and loss statements of all payment should also be recorded on a regularly, usually on a weekly or monthly, basis. This will depend on the size and management structure of the pharmacy.

Stock

Management should oversee the stock of pharmaceutical goods and other items for sale in the pharmacy. This is particularly important for prescription drugs and other controlled items (e.g. sharps), which should be checked more regularly. Most pharmaceutical suppliers make two deliveries daily, so replacements can be ordered and received quickly when the supply is low.

Sales and marketing

Pharmacy management should consider sales and marketing strategy to maintain regular customers and positive revenue.

In pharmacies operating under major chains, central corporate bodies usually decide upon the promotional periods and guidelines to be carried out in each pharmacy.

For independent pharmacies, the pharmacy manager is often responsible for creating sales and marketing campaigns without external guidance. They usually have the best knowledge of the pharmacy stock and which items need pushing to sell and maintain cycling of stock.

Improving pharmacy management

Various roles and responsibilities are included in the role of pharmacy management. It can be difficult for one person to oversee all of these areas, particularly in larger pharmacies, and in such cases, a pharmacy management team may be required to perform all duties adequately.

There are several qualities that are particularly beneficial for pharmacy management in maintaining and running a profitable pharmacy. They should have good people skills to communicate with staff, provide customer service and assist with conflict resolution.

They should also have a good understanding of the analytics and metrics that indicate the performance of the pharmacy, and which factors affect this. Additionally, pharmacy managers should understand concepts of sales and marketing to ensure there is profitability of the pharmacy.

References

1. http://www.pharmpress.com/files/docs/epm2e_samplechapter.pdf
2. http://apps.who.int/medicinedocs/documents/s19622en/s19622en.pdf
3. http://www.csc.com/health_services/offerings/99982/101845-pharmacy_management
4. http://www.pharmaceutical-journal.com/careers/career-feature/how-to-manage-staff-and-other-pharmacy-colleagues/20068366.article
5. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4568116/