North Kansas City Hospital
The Challenge
Historically, pharmacy inventory management at NKCH was composed of a series of manual, time-consuming processes that include running and compiling multiple reports. Breakdowns or delays in these medication management processes can result in stockouts, missing medications, or insufficient par levels that lead to delays in drug administration and ultimately impact patient care. Additionally, inefficiencies in pharmacy workflows can lead to frustrated nursing staff and an overall decrease in nursing satisfaction.
At NKCH, staff noticed that their current workflows were creating operational inefficiencies and avoidable delays in medication administration. The pharmacy team realized they needed to leverage advanced analytics to enhance their medication management decisions and processes and ensure minimal impacts to patient care.
The Solution
NKCH turned to Omnicell, their strategic partner for medication management, to implement a cloud-based analytics platform to assist with optimizing pharmacy workflows. The existing Omnicell automation platform — including Automated Dispensing Cabinets, XT Anesthesia Workstation, and pharmacy carousels — provided the item-level visibility necessary to make informed decisions. The NKCH team selected Omnicell's Inventory Optimization Service, which provided real-time, cloud-based analytics to enhance inventory management decisions. A dedicated clinical strategist curated opportunities to right-size pharmacy inventory and provided suggestions to minimize stockouts, medication requests, and more.
The Impact
The pharmacy leaders noticed the benefits of Inventory Optimization Service almost immediately. Over a four-month period, they eliminated approximately 1,200 medication requests, increased nursing satisfaction by 7%, and reduced stockouts by approximately 10%. NKCH was also able to increase the number of medications administered within 60 minutes by approximately 21,000 doses. The pharmacy team reported a 76% satisfaction rate with the enhanced medication management workflows.
"Our inpatient pharmacy used to receive an average of 35 medication requests per day from the care floor. With Omnicell Inventory Optimization Service, we've reduced these requests to under 7 per day by adjusting our workflow to ensure commonly requested medications are already available upstairs," said Adam Richter, Clinical Pharmacist.
Visit Omnicell.com/POC to learn more today.