Outpatient pharmacies are playing an increasingly important role in the health systems’ integrated care approach. With the historic changes brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing shift to digital healthcare delivery, the outpatient pharmacy is heavily involved in helping to improve patient outcomes across a range of care settings, reducing hospital readmissions and increasing revenue growth.
75% of health systems say the pharmacy department will provide a significant financial contribution.
Your outpatient pharmacy offers an avenue for the health system to provide continuity of care, a way to reduce self-insured prescription drug costs, and an opportunity for patients to enhance connections to medical professionals who can help keep them healthy and safe.
Several factors have contributed to the rise of the outpatient pharmacy. For example, the 340B drug pricing program, allowing outpatient pharmacies to generate savings on drug purchases for medications that are made available to an underserved patient population. In addition, the specialty pharmacy business has grown due to an increase in complex conditions that require specialty medications. And children’s hospitals have begun opening outpatient pharmacies due to a rising need for compound medications.
77% of health system pharmacies will be recognized as a preferred site of care for complex therapies (e.g., specialty pharmacy).
The pandemic has had a significant, and likely long-lasting impact on the outpatient pharmacy. It accelerated preference for in-home care as patients looked to reduce trips outside of the home. This trend is expected to continue for outpatient pharmacies and will be aided by technologies that allow for self-service medication information, consolidated pick-up programs, and more personalized communications that align with patient preferences.
Health systems rely on their outpatient pharmacies to influence and impact care quality. With health systems looking to lower the cost of care while improving outcomes, many are extending the reach of the hospital with the outpatient pharmacy. As your outpatient pharmacy evolves, there is a growing need for advanced technologies that enable pharmacists to practice at the top of their license.
To address the growing needs for advanced technology in the outpatient pharmacy, EnlivenHealth® offers OutpatientPowered, a suite of outpatient pharmacy software solutions. These solutions combine EnlivenHealth’s advanced Personalized IVR, Medication Synchronization, Outbound Communications, and Econcile. Our technologies enable you to provide a truly personalized experience for your patients and employees through:
- Outpatient pharmacy messaging tailored to patient preferences including phone calls, 24/7 IVR solutions, SMS texting and email.
- Improved medication adherence by aligning patients’ chronic medications to one convenient, monthly pickup date based on an appointment.
- Streamlined workflows to reduce time spent on repetitive tasks and to allow pharmacists to provide high-value, personalized patient care.
- A cost-effective way to manage third-party receivables and payments on prescription claims.
- Increased script revenue while lowering spend and maximizing specialty growth and 340B pricing.
*ASHP Foundation Pharmacy Forecast 2022: Strategic Planning Guidance for Pharmacy Departments in Hospitals and Health Systems, December 3, 2021.
Find out how OutpatientPowered from EnlivenHealth® can help you and your team transform patient health outcomes, streamlines pharmacy workflows, reduces costs, and decreases hospital readmissions.