Safe and Speedy Drug Collection. Drastically Reducing the Counting and Dispensing Workload

The QOL Group currently operates more than 800 pharmacies throughout Japan. Among them, the QOL Pharmacy Ebisu Store is being developed as, in the words of Shinobu Karasawa (President of QOL), “a model of next-gen pharmacy,” with a full range of daily services, from advanced medical care to local community and home-based patient care. The Yuyama DrugStation, an automated counting and dispensing machine, is one of the key tools supporting their day-to-day operations.
QOL Pharmacy Ebisu Store is the first pharmacy to implement the DrugStation and has made significant progress in work optimization, error prevention, and quality improvements.

Error-free Operation by Non-pharmacists

The QOL Pharmacy Ebisu Store, which reopened in May 2020, currently has a team of six pharmacists and six medical clerks (MCs). The pharmacy receives most of its prescriptions from the nearby Kosei Chuo Hospital, which has 22 wards. As a result, it maintains a diverse patient base of various age groups and with a range of diagnoses.
QOL Pharmacy is taking steps to address the growing demand for digitization arising from the COVID-19 disaster and anticipation of next 40 years following on from 2025, when the baby boomer generation will reach their late senior years. Their Ebisu store was reopened in May 2020 as an experimental model for the company’s new strategy and concept of “creating pharmacies for the future.” Features of the store include: 1) the use of lockers for unattended delivery of medicines, 2) the introduction of mechanization technologies to streamline dispensing operations and enhance productivity of the pharmacy, and 3) the implementation of avatars.

Kayoko Sakaguchi, the pharmacy manager, explains the reason for the introduction of the DrugStation in terms of mechanization: “The picking process in Japan is unique and meticulous. The DrugStation was designed by a Japanese dispenser manufacturer specifically to meet these unique requirements.” QOL pharmacists have been working with Yuyama and offering advice since the development phase of the DrugStation. The DrugStation in the Ebisu store was the first on the market.

DrugStation automates medication collection based on the prescription content and optimizes inventory management. Most importantly, all countable and dispensable medications are managed and automatically collected with barcode data. This means that anyone, regardless of their skill level, can collect the medications. Ms. Sakaguchi comments that, “That fact that anyone can do it in the same amount of time is a big advantage.”

In dispensing, an experienced person who knows where medications are on the shelf will always be faster than a newcomer with less experience. That’s unavoidable. The DrugStation solves the issue of pharmacists needing to move back and forth in the dispensing room. Ms. Sakaguchi explains, “The system automatically picks the prescription’s contents (medications) from the inventory and then a tray with the medication appears in front of you. Anyone, even non-pharmacists can operate it by simply following the instructions on the monitor.” She further emphasizes, “Counting and collecting errors have dropped dramatically and we no longer to need to back and forth in the dispensing room.”

The DrugStation improves accuracy by using a camera to verify the shape of collected medications, to determine fractions by size, and to count and inspect sheets based on the weight. Ms Sakaguchi explains, “The system delivers medications according to information on the prescription, so provided the prescription is correct, there is no way to accidentally pick the wrong medication. I think they’ve taken safety seriously with the camera’s fractional inspection system, which greatly reduces counting errors.”

The Drug Station is a machine that can be used by anyone. At the Ebisu Store, the MCs operate the DrugStation so that the pharmacists can focus on the other duties. Ms. Sakaguchi comments “As pharmacists, we are responsible for inspecting medications and providing patient instructions when handing over the medication. Now that the MCs look after the picking, we can devote more time to giving patient instructions. The quality of our work, as pharmacists, has improved because we can devote more time to interacting with patients instead of laborious duties such as dispensing.”
“The number of times we (pharmacists) have to give feedback to a patient’s physician based on something the patient has told us about their medication has doubled. That’s in addition to phone calls a week or so later to check on new medications and see if there have been any side effects.”continues Ms. Sakaguchi regarding the work optimization and improvements.

In talking about the COVID-19 situation she says, “Long-term prescriptions require follow-ups, and I think demand for such services will increase. A pharmacists’ job doesn’t end after handing over medications and giving instructions. Our company has always placed emphasis on following up on our patients, and I think we can showcase this further.” QOL is continuously striving to be a closer presence in the community as per their slogan “Peace of mind that is closest to you.”

（From the pharmaceutical reports）

Information as of July 2021