Community pharmacies are playing a bigger part in their customers’ lives, adding services like medication therapy management, vaccinations, telepharmacy, and chronic disease management.
It’s all part of the expansion of pharmacy services to increase preventive care, improve community health and trim healthcare costs.
Sometimes called the “eyes and ears” of healthcare, pharmacies are close to individuals and neighborhoods. And they proved their worth by providing valuable expanded services and even-handed education during the Covid pandemic.
Pharmacists and their staff now administer vaccine shots, use telehealth to advise patients, discuss diabetes and other chronic illnesses with customers, and host screenings to detect health risks.
Smart growth
Many customers like the transition, which simplifies their search for services and eliminates long waits at doctors’ offices.
Insurance companies and government agencies also welcome the added services, which can reduce healthcare costs.
Hurdles remain: Insurance companies struggle to properly compensate pharmacists for the added services, and some healthcare professionals object to added authority for pharmacists.
Still, the momentum favors more services that improve health and convenience and emphasize preventive care.
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