Best Practices for Building a Successful Autonomous Pharmacy Business Case

Jim Longo
Senior Manager, Value Management, Omnicell

Today’s healthcare environment is highly unpredictable. The ongoing effects of increasing expenses, downward pressure on revenue and reimbursement, and compressed operating margins are compounded by wildcards like the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Autonomous Pharmacy – a roadmap to achieve zero-error medication management through a fully automated infrastructure – can help to solve these clinical and operational challenges. But gaining organizational support and approval for the technology investment can be complex and challenging to navigate.

Champions of the Autonomous Pharmacy must make their case with Capital Review Committees and ad-hoc project evaluation and approval groups who increasingly require more time and information to make decisions. Additionally, capital is scarce and everchanging non-clinical participants often require high-priced consultants to implement change.

To help decision makers understand the value of the Autonomous Pharmacy vision, you’ll need to make a compelling business case. Autonomous Pharmacy initiatives can be positioned for approval and success through a solid Value Justification – built by thorough preparation and collaboration with peers – that demonstrates the transformational value to the health system, including:

• Increased efficiency for pharmacy, nursing, and other departments
• Reduced costs associated with medication inventory, expired medications, and waste
• Introduction or expansion of clinical and transitions of care programs that drive length of stay, quality of care, and readmissions
• Reduced risk and exposure from drug diversion and adverse drug events
• Revenue enhancement from introduction or expansion of pharmacy or other services, or improved charge capture

A partner like Omnicell can help with development of your Value Justification, but the ownership ultimately lies with the health system champion. To learn more about building a compelling case for the Autonomous Pharmacy, read our recent white paper.

DISCLAIMER

The views and opinions expressed in this blog are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any other agency, organization, employer or company. Assumptions made in the analysis are not reflective of the position of any entity other than the author(s). These views are always subject to change, revision, and rethinking at any time and may not be held in perpetuity.