Careers in Retail Pharmacy

New technology dispenses with usual trip to pharmacy

BY ANTOINETTE ALEXANDER for physicians—not to mention desk, the patient presents the pre-a benefit to patients (i.e. fewer scription to the office staff.

As a student entering the pro- trips to the pharmacy and re- • The medication is dispensed fession, it is important to take duced drug costs)—Cohen said from the machine and the office note of alternative methods of the company also is looking to staff uses a safety system—which prescription dispensing that partner with pharmacists. How- involves color-coded labels—to could impact retail. One such ever, some sources believe that match the medication the patient company that should be on the the threat of such a system cut- received to the prescription or-radar screen is QuiqMeds. ting pharmacy out of the equa- dered. The patient receives a per-

During the past year, tion could present challenges. sonalized drug information QuiqMeds has been devel- s h e e t , w h i c h i n c l u d e s oping a fulfillment system dosing instructions.

that enables physicians to • The patient pays for
fulfill prescriptions for the medication as part of
their patients at the point the standard office check-
of care. That system is op- out routine.
erating in four doctors’ of- Cohen said the compa-
fices in the greater ny now is looking to
Philadelphia area, and the p a r t n e r w i t h p h a r m a -
company is gearing up for cies, in part, because the
a national expansion—at current system does not
the expense of pharmacy? a d d r e s s d r u g i n t e r a c -
“We have installed a tions. “It would give the
couple of systems in doc- pharmacist an opportu-
tors’ offices and we are nity, depending on the
comfortable that, as a state, of capturing the
^{technology company, we} Medicines are kept in a QuiqMeds machine at doctors’ ^{scripts that never get}
fundamentally have the offices until they are prescribed. filled … also there is a
easiest system for the doc- large quantify of refills
tor and more importantly the that never get filled so we are
doctor’s office staff to be able to providing the enabling technol-
do this [dispense medications],” ogy to do that,” Cohen said. For
said Herbert Cohen, chief execu- example, a pharmacy could put
tiveofficerof QuiqMeds. its banner on the machine,
According to QuiqMeds, cur- which would be located in a
rent plans are to grow within doctor’s office, and perhaps
doctors’ offices in the greater maintain the system.
Philadelphia-area over the next However, some sources don’t
12 months to 18 months and see it as an ideal situation. “If
then expand on a regional basis. people want to partner, the tra-
The machine is marketed as one ditional partnership seems to
that dispenses generic medica- work. The doctor writes the
tions, but Cohen said it is “set up prescription and the pharma-
to do everything.” cist fills it and the consumer

While the company’s market- ideally goes to the pharmacy of ing materials on its Web site, their choice so you have a www.quiqmeds.com, clearly healthy competitive environ-position the system as a boon ment,” Rector said.

“There is a good reason why there is a physician function and a pharmacist function. It is to protect consumers and to protect competition,” said John Rector, senior vice president and general counsel for the National Community Pharmacists Association.

The automated machine currently works as follows:

• Medications are stored in the locked machine until prescribed, and then they are dispensed.

• Doctors, via a password-pro-tected touch screen, enter the drug to be prescribed, the strength, dosage directions and refills.

• Upon checkout at the front

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Fall 2006