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6 ChatGPT Pharmacy Hacks
The rapid advancement of artificial intelligence is revolutionising industries across the board, and the pharmacy sector is no exception. As AI technology continues to develop, tools like ChatGPT are emerging as catalysts for change in how pharmacies operate.
a list of pharmacist and chat GPT related jokes told on the ChatGPT platform: Why did the pharmacy owner hire ChatGPT instead of a new pharmacist? Because it doesn't require coffee breaks or vacations! How do you know when ChatGPT is working in a pharmacy? The shelves are always stocked, and there's never a line at the counter. Why did ChatGPT make the perfect pharmacy assistant? It had a "prescription" for success. What did the pharmacist say when ChatGPT correctly identified a drug interaction? "I guess we'll call it a 'pharmACEutical.'" Why was the pharmacist impressed with ChatGPT's knowledge of medications? Because it had access to the entire "data-scription" list! What do you call ChatGPT when it's integrated into a pharmacy's software? "The Digital Druggist." What did the pharmacist say when ChatGPT predicted the exact number of pill bottles needed for the month? "That's a tough pill to swallow!" Why did the pharmacist never have to worry about ChatGPT running late? It's always on "cloud nine" and ready to work! How do you know when ChatGPT is working at the pharmacy? The staff meetings are unusually quiet! Why did ChatGPT become the pharmacy's most popular employee? It always had the right "dose" of information! Please note that these jokes are intended for entertainment purposes only and should not be taken as an indication that ChatGPT will replace pharmacists. The primary goal of AI tools like ChatGPT is to assist and augment human professionals, not to replace them.

Probably the worst application of ChatGPT I’ve ever done, asking it for jokes for this image. Comedians can sleep easy.

In this article, we explore 6 ways ChatGPT can integrate into pharmacy practice, streamlining processes, enhancing customer service, and optimising operations.

Can you start doing all these overnight? No.

Should you start a journey for integrating them today? Absolutely. Unless you’ve got plans with your kids. In which case, do that first. Then, and only then, should you start your pharmacy journey with GPT.

1. Automated Customer Support and “Virtual” ChatGPT Pharmacist Consultations

One of the key applications of ChatGPT in pharmacy practice is automating patient interactions – at least, the ones that happen all day every day. By integrating ChatGPT into pharmacy systems, pharmacies provide instant and accurate answers to customer queries, saving time and resources while maintaining a consistently high level of customer service.

Moreover, ChatGPT can also facilitate virtual pharmacist consultations, giving patients convenient access to professional advice without requiring a physical visit to the pharmacy.

We’re now exploring how we can use ChatGPT in your pharmacy website.

How would this work?

ChatGPT operates by processing and understanding data it’s given. By using Open AI‘s API, then coding a bespoke model/application for ChatGPT, it could understand your pharmacy’s data, such as the data held in your PMR system. Using this would enable it to respond to patient queries about their medication, including anything from asking when their prescription will be ready, to reporting side effects they’re experiencing and asking for advice.

The code could then tell ChatGPT to tell the patient to either seek the advice of a pharmacist or, potentially, raise a red flag in the PMR system based on the Patient’s interaction.

I think an initial issue is patients accepting that they were talking to AI – there are lots of trust issues there (You would absolutely have to be up front about it being an automated response). But this is a barrier to all new tech, and the more people used it, the more used to it they’d get.

2. Drug Interaction Checks and Prescription Validation

Patient safety is paramount in any healthcare setting, and pharmacies play a critical role in ensuring the safe dispensing of medications. ChatGPT can be employed to analyse drug interactions, alerting pharmacists to potential risks and helping to minimise the likelihood of adverse drug reactions. Additionally, ChatGPT can assist in automatically validating prescriptions, identifying potential errors, and ensuring compliance with legal and regulatory requirements.

Could Pharmacy PMR Systems then harness ChatGPT? We think so.

3. Inventory Management and Predictive Analytics for Demand Forecasting

Effective inventory management is essential to the smooth operation of a pharmacy. By leveraging ChatGPT, pharmacies can track and manage their inventory more efficiently, optimising stock levels and preventing running out of meds. Furthermore, integrating ChatGPT with external pharmacy data (such as the RPS, GPhC, PharmData) enables better demand forecasting, allowing adjusting inventory and staffing in anticipation of future needs.

4. Staff Training and Education

Pharmacies utilising ChatGPT as an educational resource to train staff on new medications, procedures, and regulations, ensuring a highly skilled and knowledgeable workforce would be possible right now, with the right development.

This AI-assisted training can help employees stay current with industry developments and provide the best possible care to patients.

How can pharmacy owners trust ChatGPT enough to use it for training their staff?

Pharmacy owners concerns about relying on an AI system like ChatGPT for staff training are understandable.

Establishing trust in the technology requires:

  1. Validating the information provided by ChatGPT: Pharmacy owners can cross-check the information generated by ChatGPT with reliable sources, such as regulatory guidelines, drug databases, or educational materials.
  2. Combining AI assistance with human expertise: ChatGPT can be used as a supplementary resource alongside traditional training methods, providing staff with a comprehensive learning experience.
  3. Monitoring and adjusting: Pharmacy owners can regularly review and assess the quality of the training materials generated by ChatGPT and adjust their approach accordingly.

Regarding the validation of the information provided by ChatGPT, it should be possible to code ChatGPT’s API to integrate with the resources you yourself as a pharmacist would trust…meaning it has access to all the right information.

So far, my partner, who is a tax advisor who hates ChatGPT conceptually, has begrudgingly conceded that it knows the tax legislation pretty well. It’s answered things it took her 20 minutes to look up, instantly. Of course, it’s human nature to want to double-check this, but overall, AI is only as good as the data it’s trained on.

Giving it access to the same data you have means it’s probably going to be fine.

5. Personalised Medication Reminders and Patient Engagement

Improving patient adherence to medication regimens is crucial in achieving better health outcomes.

Pharmacies can use ChatGPT to send personalised medication reminders via text or email, making it easier for patients to remember when to take their medications. Additionally, ChatGPT can help pharmacies engage with their patients through tailored content and targeted marketing campaigns, promoting specific products or services and fostering long-term relationships.

Sending personalised medication reminders via text or email using ChatGPT requires integration with the pharmacy’s software systems. Here’s how this can be achieved:

  1. Establish a secure connection between the pharmacy’s software and ChatGPT API, allowing the AI to access relevant patient data, such as medication schedules and contact information.
  2. Develop custom scripts or applications that utilise ChatGPT to generate personalised reminder messages based on the patient’s medication regimen.
  3. Integrate the ChatGPT-generated messages with the pharmacy’s existing communication systems, such as email or SMS platforms, to automatically send reminders to patients.

6. Continuous Process Improvement

Pharmacies can harness the analytical capabilities of ChatGPT to evaluate operational data and identify areas for improvement. By continuously refining workflows and customer service, pharmacies can ensure they remain competitive and provide optimal care to their patients. Again, this would require investing into custom development, but the investment would be a fraction of the value generated, especially since the investment is ad-hoc and the benefits are ongoing.

Conclusion

The integration of ChatGPT into pharmacy practice holds immense potential to revolutionise the industry and change pharmacists’ lives by automating key processes, improving customer service, and optimising overall operations. As AI technology continues to advance, the applications of ChatGPT in pharmacy practice will only expand, paving the way for a more efficient and patient-centric healthcare experience.

Much of these require additional development on the pharmacy’s own site. Using ChatGPT’s API as a foundation, however, this is possible.

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Digital health pharmacy
With so much focus on streamlining business practices and revenues, it’s easily forgotten that Digital Health is ultimately about improving patient health. We’ll look at four great digital health solutions to offer in your pharmacy in 2021 which benefit your patient as much as your pharmacy.

 

digital health services revolutionising patient care

There are lots of services to offer in your pharmacy, but we’re highlighting some of the top ones for 2021.

The Digital Health services to offer in your pharmacy

 

1. TympaHealth

 

TympaHealth’s range of ear health has brought another service for pharmacies to offer to their communities, and it’s absolutely taken off across the UK.

 

The Technology

As shown in the video above, TympaHealth integrates health technology with mobile technology. It also combines the ability to conduct hearing tests and micro-suction into one piece of kit.

Benefits of the service

With most GP’s dropping the ear wax removal during COVID-19, patients are actively seeking out the service. If your pharmacy is appearing on search engines when people search for “ear wax treatment” or similar, you’ll be reaping the rewards already.

Micro-suction, for example. typically takes between 10-20 minutes per appointment, with most prices around £50. So it’s decent bang for your buck. If you automate the process for booking appointments, you really begin driving your profit/minute conversion into an attractive proposition for your pharmacy.

The TympaHealth offering provides more than just ear wax removal, and the process is one that assures patients that their overall ear health is in good hands. This assurance and professional service gives confidence in your pharmacy’s ability to deliver other services, too.

As far as initial services to trial, moving towards a more service-driven pharmacy model, TympaHealth’s Ear Health service is a great place to start in 2021.

 

2. Allergy Testing

 

The world has never been more self-aware and proactive when it comes to intolerances and allergies. One only has to stroll down the dairy aisle of a supermarket and see all the Lactose-free products on offer to know that intolerances and allergies are at the forefront of people’s minds nowadays.

 

 

The Technology

PharmaDoctor partnered with Klarify.me who innovated DIY Allergy Test Kits for people to order and carry out at home. The Klarify test kits detect the body’s reactions to allergen extracts and components, which allows for comprehensive precision testing on hundreds of allergens.

The PharmaDoctor service gives you the accredited training necessary for delivering the service for patients. It’s a useful service, as a lot of patients struggle extracting blood themselves.

Easy Upsell

Someone buying Antihistamines? Just as you look for warning signs with health conditions, allergies are now something you can screen for and test, without having to refer anyone externally.

Benefits of going private

Of course, allergy tests are available through the NHS, but an allergy test service offers the benefit of not having to a) wait months to find out if you can eat or drink a certain foodstuff and b) keep a food diary in attempts to try and determine the source of intolerance.

If you’re in an affluent area where people invest money to save themselves time, this service could be very popular.

3. Pharmaself24

 

Pharmaself24 brings ATM technology to prescriptions. Think about that. How much more convenient did the banking experience become when withdrawing cash didn’t require queueing up and speaking to someone? Not only for the patients but for the banks. It meant the tellers could give more useful services to people who needed more complicated problems solving.

It’s hardly a secret in the industry that margins on prescriptions have put a lot of pressure on pharmacies to come up with alternative solutions to increase their revenue, in some cases to stay afloat. It doubles up as both a convenient service and efficient automation, Pharmaself24 is a great way for your pharmacy to automate the collection of medicines, become more convenient for patients, and free up your staff’s valuable time.

 

 

The Technology

The tech works in a similar way to an Amazon lock-box.

  1. The patient registers with you for the service.
  2. They re-order their prescription as usual (hopefully through a prescription-reordering app).
  3. You prepare the prescription as usual.
  4. Once prepared, and loaded into the Pharmaself, a text alerts the patient that their prescription is ready for collection and gives them a PIN for the machine.
  5. The patient collects their prescription whenever they want, 24/7.
  6. As it’s all digitised, the Pharmaself24 keeps a full audit trail from loading to collection.

It’s an incredible solution for your patients. During the pandemic, it really hammered home its utility, offering a chance to collect prescriptions without any need to come into contact with another person. See how we drove 100’s of EPS Sign-ups through Pharmaself24 marketing.

In a post-pandemic world, the value of a Prescription Collection Machine is intrinsic to customer convenience. And customer convenience is in turn, crucial to customer retention. 24/7 collection is so convenient for the working population, as well as people whose work shifts change.

Why would you queue, or collect at hours that don’t suit you, when you don’t have to?

Competitive Customer Convenience

Customer convenience isn’t a problem when you don’t have convenient competition. But the second someone else is offering 24/7 collection nearby, you’re going to start losing customers. Why wait until you’re losing customers? You could be the one with the machine and accumulating more customers.

Another source of this competition is online pharmacies. They already offer an extremely convenient service. But people might actually prefer to collect their prescriptions. People living in a block of flats for instance may have delivery difficulties. People who aren’t at home a lot might not want their prescriptions sat on their doorstep getting rained on. It’s not going to be the biggest source of people signing up, but it’s another string to your convenient bow.

With digital health in mind, this is a great service for patients. Many patients often complain about their prescriptions not being ready on time. Their dependence on their medication makes timeliness a major concern for them. Streamlining the process and giving round-the-clock access to collections severely reduces prescription dispensing time and decreases occurrences of patients going without medication (whoever’s fault it is).

For so many reasons, Prescription Collection Machines like the Pharmaself24 are absolutely one of the top digital health innovations to adopt in 2021.

Already offer Prescription Collection or are planning to? Check out our Pharmaself24 marketing packs to massively increase EPS sign-ups in your community.

 

4. Instant Dentist

When it comes to convenience, and tech which disrupts industries, Dental Health is a prime example.

 

 

Dentists have one of the ultimate reputations for being hard to get an appointment with. By the time a toothache gets seen to, it’s too late – it’s either gone away or there was no stitch in time to save the nine. The attraction of Instant Dentist is banishing that barrier.

The Technology

As you can see in the video above, Instant Dentist works via photos and questions uploaded through an app, which Online Dentists then use to make assessments. (It’s probably a good idea to dedicate a private space in your pharmacy for people to take these photos to avoid embarrassment.) The Online Dentists then communicate with the patients via the app to prescribe treatment or products for their issue.

Why should I offer the service?

Boots on the ground, to use the old military phrase. People will love the very concept of Instant Dentist, so it’s a great thing to stick in your windows, preferably on an eye-catching digital screen, but posters would work too. (The reason I prefer digital screens for pharmacies offering digital services like that is that it sets the tone for a hygienic, clean, modern facility.) Footfall, at the time of writing, is still a touchy subject, with lockdown only just now beginning to ease.

However, if you market Instant Dentist digitally, (which you absolutely should) then it’s a lockdown-proof service anyway. People have to leave their homes to go to a dentist. The Instant Dentist service is just a different location to get an available dentist consultation.

The service is a completely free setup. As it’s a remote service that simply connects the patients to dentists, there isn’t any additional work for you or compliance to meet.

And you get a revenue split.

Increase visitors to your pharmacy and increase revenue.

It’s that simple.

 

5. Video Consultations

 

Even coming out of lockdown, video consultations are a super convenient solution (which also broadens your geographical catchment area) and are now culturally normalised.

 

Pharmacy Mentor can integrate Video Consultation software into your Pharmacy Mentor Website

 

Even the elderly market adopted the use of this technology during the pandemic to stay in contact with family. And for the elderly, video consultations solve the problem of mobility. Offering video consultations alongside in-person appointments makes your service accessible to everyone.

The important considerations when offering video consultations are the experience and security.

User Experience

No one wants a laggy video call where you struggle to see and hear someone. A solid pharmacy internet connection is a necessity to offer this service.

Safeguarding & Security with Video Consultations

There are significant differences between video calls with friends versus patients. Be mindful of confidentiality over video calls. Treat them with the same respect you’d give to face-to-face consultations is key.

Here is the NHS guidance for providing safe video consultations in a healthcare environment.

 

Want to talk more about which services to offer in your pharmacy?

 

Get in touch! We can help with everything you need to get started, including attracting more people to your pharmacy by marketing these services expertly.

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