Top Pharmacy Trends to Look Out for in 2022

With the advent of Covid-19, pharmacies across the world have had to deal with unforeseen challenges in the last few years. This has resulted in the demand for new and innovative ways to tackle issues like; disrupted supply chains, heightened patient demands, vaccine distributions, the increasing need for virtual care, and finding generic/lower-cost options for their uninsured and underinsured clients. Because of this transformation, there are certain trends that pharmacies can adopt to optimize their operational efficiency.

A rise in the Popularity of E-pharmacies

These days, most patients (especially those in remote areas) expect more digital and technological convenience from their pharmacist, making online pharmacies a go-to option. For most offline brick-and-mortar pharmacies losing business to online stores, this is the perfect time to adopt this trend by opening an online pharmacy for themselves.

By adopting these tech-driven methods, pharmacies can remain competitive and relevant while meeting patient expectations. Online pharmacies like Canada Drugs offer customers easy access to convenient and affordable drugs with great discounts, free shipping, fast customer service, and mail order delivery.

Growth of Telepharmacy

Although telepharmacy is not a new concept (telepharmacy services date as far back as the early 2000s), the pandemic has increased its popularity. With more and more consumers benefiting from telehealth during the pandemic, it is safe to say that telepharmacy is a trend that is here to stay.

Digitization with AI

Technological innovation and digitization are necessary for any growing economy, and the pharmacy business is not left out. Most pharmacies have now aligned their offline business with online opportunities so as to keep up with the pace of the rapidly changing technological market. Since consumers now prefer doorstep service instead of going out to buy goods, pharmacies can leverage artificial intelligence to help customers experience real-life medical consultations and shopping experiences from the comfort of their own homes.

Digital Records

Digitizing patient records is a trend that has been around for quite some time now and will continue in 2022. Converting paper-based records to digital records will make operations more efficient. These records will contain patient health and medication history to help pharmacists promote regulatory compliance and keep track of a patient’s prescription and adherence to medication.

Digital Training

Several online training courses are now available for the new technologies in the pharmaceutical sector. This training will be further expanded in 2022 to ensure an improvement in operations and compliance. The training will also help pharmacy teams to fully understand the proper use of all the technologies that will help pharmacies meet up with the regulatory standards.

Some of these technologies include; patient planning portals, digital signatures, and electronic documentation software. Each of these online training courses can be offered anytime and from any location with personalization options for every user, making them cost-effective.

Conclusion:

Recent surveys have shown that pharmacies and pharmacists have become more active in the last few years because of the pandemic. They have taken up duties that go beyond their traditional roles. From counseling and connecting patients to the proper health services to becoming go-to experts and health care, touch-points patients can turn to.

The pandemic also led to a spike in the number of online pharmacies due to the convenience of having mail-order deliveries of drugs. However, there is no need to see these online pharmacies as the enemy. By carefully adjusting to the above-mentioned trends, pharmacies can compete and stay relevant while meeting customer satisfaction.