Pharmacy Operations Management

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Pharmacy Operations Management Paper Maritza Carvajal University of Phoenix Health Care Operations Management OPS/HC571 Jeff Wells December 19, 2011 Pharmacy Operations Management Introduction The pharmacy is often one of the largest and most profitable departments in a hospital. A pharmacy is a facility that exists to fill and dispense drugs and medications that are prescribed by physicians or other caregivers. Pharmacists and pharmacies are active participants in the health delivery process (along with physicians and nurses) and are often structurally organized within the clinical care or clinical support services divisions (Griffith, 1992). Pharmacy on Operations Management Pharmacies provide service to customers or patients and are responsible for ordering, replenishing, storing, and providing controls over drugs. There are a number of characteristics about pharmacies that make it primarily operational and logistical in structure. Pharmacies represent multiple operations management challenges, including inventory, personnel management, technology and automation, management controls, location analysis and selection, procurement, and network distribution. The most difficult is that of managing the movement of drugs, which accounts for the largest percentage of expenses for hospital pharmacies. Pharmacies typically have two components of expense: • Labor, for filling, dispensing, and compounding orders and drugs. • Cost of goods sold. Pharmacies can be quite complex in their operations. They are required to be staffed and managed primarily by pharmacists because state and national boards require all dispensing of drugs and medications to be performed by registered pharmacists licensed in that state (Langabeer, 2008, p. 344). In addition, pharmacies must follow strict guidelines, policies and procedures

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