A Few Things I Learned This Week....

 I  spent a day at the 2022 Annual Technology and Business Conference of the National Council on Prescription Drug programs, better known as NCPDP.  It provides every pharmacy with the specific identifying number used to bill for third party reimbursement; but it does a whole lot more. 

One of the “other” things is hosting a technology conference that attracts a diverse group of companies interested in helping pharmacies operate more efficiently; and, NCPDP advocates for pharmacists to be allowed to provide more clinical services. 

Dr. Jerome Adams, the former U.S. Surgeon General, delivered an informative and uplifting Key Note address.  Adams framed his comments with the statement that the United States does not need to spend “one dime more on health care.”  Instead, as he explained over the next 30+ minutes, we simply need to rethink and rearrange how we spend our healthcare dollars. 

One notable example is, he says, for some mysterious reason both the government and private insurers have decided not to cover things “above the neck.”  They don’t’ pay for dental work, hearing aids, eye glasses or, mental health conditions.  As for mental health Adams points out how more money spent on helping people deal with mental health and related social skills would save the nation billions of dollars on the cost of imprisonment.   This is especially true if one factors in the cost to society of the loss of human potential and the money spent to replace property losses due to crime. 

One topic mentioned in several presentations, and included in Adams’ remarks, is the costs to the health care system of social determinants of health.  The inability of the underprivileged to gain access to early detection and poor nutritional is a major cause of obesity.  And, as we all know, obesity drives a variety of chronic health conditions.  Adams argues focusing more attention on these issues now would save our society billions of dollars.   

NCPDP is dedicated to helping payers and regulators understand that by empowering – and paying – pharmacists to provide new, more and better healthcare services that we can improve the health of more Americans.  And,  as Adams says, it won’t cost us one dime more. 

If you own or manage a pharmacy I challenge you to reach out to your elected representatives, insurance commissioners and other policy makers and employers in your area.  Let them know that by taking fuller advantage of the resources your pharmacy provides your community can save money and enjoy better health. 

No Front-End Is Too Little To Matter

Learning from others is one of the secrets of success.  And, boy did I learn a lot from my conversation with Shahida Choudhry, Pharm D., and owner of The Palms Pharmacy, in Tampa, FL.  

Shahida is a rock star! Operating out of an 1800 square foot facility with a that house the "typical" pharmacy area and a compounding lab.  Leaving only about 300 square feet for her front-end.  Most owners would simply put in some classic drug store products and ignore the space.  But, there is nothing normal about her. By listening to customers, considering her market area, tapping into local suppliers and sourcing product from innovative vendors she has turned her 300 square foot into a profit center and a patient magnet.  

And better yet, she shares her story in my most recent podcast.  Here's the link: 

 https://traffic.megaphone.fm/CSN8831132273.mp3?updated=1649422210

While your front-end may only account for 5-10% of sales it affects 80% of your image.  Making it appealing, and profitable is both important and possible.  Just ask Shahida, she'll tell you that retrofitting her front-end plays a critical role in making her pharmacy profitable.  

Having Trouble Finding Good Employees; Perhaps You Should Look For Character Not Credentials

I listened to a fascinating NPR report yesterday about changes some employers are making in their recruiting efforts.  Of course they talked about signing bonuses, higher wages, flexible hours and even work from home.    

But they also mentioned another option.  That being, recruit for character with less concern for  credentials. In the NPR story the key illustration was the habit employers have of automatically requiring a college degree even one one is not necessary for the job.    

I guess the point I am trying to make it that too many pharmacy owners have grown accustomed to putting in their job description the need for a high school diploma or other educational credentials.  That is a logical requirement, and under what used to be normal, it would help clear the applicant pool of unsuitable candidates.  

But, too many applicants is no longer a problem.  So, maybe the time has come to think of new, novel and perhaps more important employment qualifications.  The world is full of mother's interested in returning to work but who do not have "classical" work experience.  Perhaps being the leader of a cub scout troop, or a volunteer with a not-for-profit organization would be a better indicator of a person's work ethic and ability.  

The point, when recruiting, try to find ways to attract people with the character traits you need, and then train them for the technical skills they require.  And, educational credentials may not be the best way to determine that.  Personal recommendations and non-commercial work experience could be a better way to find such people.

I'd love to know what you think.  Email me at;  BFKneeland@gmail.com 

Back To Normal Is Not The Goal

 Almost every day I hear someone say; “I can’t wait for things to go back to normal.“

If in 2019 you were making plans to try new things and striving to grow your pharmacy, advance your career or improve your personal life, then everything you were doing was an attempt to get out of what was then, normal. 

So, while yes, we want to put COVID behind us, we also want to find new, more and better ways to advance our professional and improve our personal lives. 

Remember that no matter how hard things get there are always ways to succeed.  I read stories of pharmacy owners who are totally reformatting their pharmacies into cash only, no insurance accepted practices.  I have spoken with pharmacists that contract with medical clinics to do chart reviews or diabetes education.  The clinic bills for the service using their billing codes and pay the pharmacist a per hour fee for providing the services.

Point of care testing is a growth field as is the role of pharmacy as a healthcare destination to aid patients in areas such as; drug nutrient depletion, improved diet, diabetes prevention education and many more services that are not dispensing related. I even know of an organized effort by a sharp vendor to incorporate the selling of health insurance into the pharmacy.  Ohers are providing, cash paid, in home elderly support care services.  Incorporating one or more of these, and dozens of other opportunities, into your pharmacy will help you move away from normal as you become; exceptional.

But what about finding more joy in what you do.  Societal expectations of what a job or career means are changing.  Consumer behavior has also changed as incents of rude and abusive customer conduct are increasing.  Working in a pharmacy just is not the same as it was a few years ago.  

No matter if you are the owner, manager, a technician or a cashier you can do much to improve your working conditions.  Pay and benefits are critical and need to be in line with the realities of the market place.  For staff members this is a good thing.  For owners and managers, maybe not so much.  But those who adjust and find ways to more fully engage, respect, trust and empower their team members will benefit from this huge shift in employer and employee relations. 

On a non-economic front, and I would argue a benefit that is more powerful than money is working conditions.  This affects owners, managers and team members equally.   Much of what happens in a pharmacy depends on the way staff members interact with one another, do their job and how well they treat patients.  Much of this depends on how much the employee believes that working in a pharmacy is a noble cause; that helping people live healthier lives is important and serves a higher purpose than simply that of making a living.    

A few years ago, I started using a made-up word; probletunity.  It is intended to underscore the notion that hidden in every problem is an opportunity in disguise.  COVID, and the closely related economic, social and health related problems it has brought upon pharmacy are well known to everyone that works in a retail pharmacy.  Yet, for those that are astute enough to see the opportunity, and then quick enough to adjust, will benefit from all the turmoil.  It has ever been so.  Wars, depressions, natural disasters and other major disruptions always produce new opportunities.  I have pointed out a few.  I’d love to have those who are smarter and more observant than me point out opportunities they see they feel are even better
than the ones I have mentioned. 

As always, here’s hoping something I have said here will help you, Do More and Be Better. 

Is 2022 The Year You Get Serious About Customer Referrals?

Here's wishing you all the best for the Holiday Season.  I'd like to give you one gift that will keep on giving by sharing a couple thoughts on how to engineer positive word-of-mouth recommendations from your current customers.  

One thing that I have seen work over the years is a well designed Customer Card.  The idea is to create some piece that tells the story of your pharmacy in a few simple words.  Let people know you are serious about being a healthcare provider and outline a few things you do that separate you from the competition.  Mention how you have invested in technology so you can provide better care, highlight how you communicate with physician's to help them find the best medication for patients and perhaps even describe how you take on the insurance companies to help get medications covered.  This is work - sit, ponder, doodle, brainstorm with team members but come up with a compelling - but very short story on how you take care of patients.  

Give these cards to your current customers and invite them to fill out the bottom portion and enter a drawing, or sign-up for your newsletter or join your birthday club.  Provides some reason for them to fill out, tear off and leave the card.  

Then, give them 2 or 3 others and invite them to give them to neighbors, friends or relatives but make sure they know to put their name on the "referred by" line.  Explain that when they give away a card and a person comes in with the card - and a new or transfer prescription  - that the person will get a $10.00 gift card towards the purchase of any private label item in the pharmacy and that the current customer will get the same.  

It's a winner.  Everybody wins and it costs you noting until it works.  

So, Happy Holidays, start thinking now how you and your team can start the New Year of right with a nicely designed Customer Referral Program.  

Two Things I Learned On The Road That May Help You Do More and Be Better

So, thanks to Liberty Software I just took my 12 major pharmacy road trip.  I formally visited four remarkable pharmacy owners in four southern states; Flower Mound Pharmacy in Texas, Caldwell Drug in Arkansas, Kirby Whitten Drug in Tennessee and Roche Pharmacy in South Carolina.  

Like independent community pharmacies all across the country the people running the pharmacy, the services they offer, the physical facility they operate from and the communities they serve are all different.  That makes for an interesting road trip, and because each of them is going to market in a slightly different manner it makes for a great way for others to learn from these owners.  

I learned a lot, and articles I have written for a couple pharmacy journals will cover some of the highlights.  For now I really want to share two thoughts for pharmacy owners all across the country.  

1. The future of independent community pharmacy is bright.  True, the glare of the son may make it hard to see but the fact is that creative, energetic owners are making good things happen and making money.  Perhaps the most important thing is they are changing - or, I'd rather say they are - improving.  I heard one owner says something like this. "If you try something new and it doesn't work, then try something else."  Try some new, do a little bit more, be different than your competitor and strive to be better tomorrow than you are today seems to be the attitude of all four of the pharmacies I visited.  

2. I have a neighbor who writes for a magazine that is read by independent auto repair shops.  We marvel at how many of the same issues confront both industries.  He taught me to look for something he calls the "invisible competitive advantage."  

I saw this "invisible" advantage in action in all four of my southern pharmacies.  What you are looking for is the atmosphere that permeates the pharmacy.  Are they happy, do they smile, do the talk to each other with courtesy, clarity and respect.  People can simply feel the electricity in the air - or the lack thereof - when they walk in the door.  If you don't have it you will loose customers and forget about getting word of mouth referrals.  

Finding ways to build a team is a challenge.  But it can and must be done and it has to start with the owner and other key staff members.  Take some time off together, away from the pharmacy, and really listen to your team, apologize for past mistakes and ask for suggestions on how you can make your pharmacy a better place to work.   Then, make some meaningful changes.  

As I close I truly don't want you to say, oh, another plea for an attitude adjustment.  That's part of any success plan but no, I am calling for more.  I want an action adjustment.  Start doing new, more, and  better.  Soon you'll see new more and better things happening in your pharmacy.  Action begets results, it all starts with you deciding you want more for yourself, your family, your team and your community.  Then you need to implement new, more and better practices, stock and sell new items,  train your people so they know more and can explain your new services with confidence and conviction. Finally, if you try something new and and it doesn't work, try something else.  

We All Make Mistakes

We all make mistakes.  Yesterday I found an old picture of me shaking hands with "Stormin' Norman" Schwarzkopf at the 2001 NCPA Annual Convention in Philadelphia.  Schwarzkopf is the general famous for winning the first gulf war in 5 days.  He was the featured speaker at the 2001 NCPA meeting   

The picture reminded me of a mistake I made at about that time.

You see, a few months prior to the NCPA conference I was the VP Independent Retail Sales for  the AmeriSource Drug Company.  In August of 2001 AmeriSource and Bergen Brunswig merged.  The October, NCPA meeting, was being held in Philadelphia, also the headquarters of the newly combined company, and it was a BIG deal for the company,

The two senior management teams worked hard to make sure the launch of our new company went well.  In an August planning session we wondered what type of "give-a-way" we could hand-out in the booth.  I had always liked box cutters.  They were small, had a little "heft" to them and they were a functional tool for a pharmacy owner to have.  So we bought 5,000 box cutters with the AmerisourceBergen logo imprinted on them.  They were to arrive in late September, in plenty of time for the convention being held in October.  

The quicker reader will spot the irony immediately; but for the rest of you, here is the mistake.  On September 11, 2001, terrorists took down four commercial airliners by killing the flight crews with box cutters.  When the freshly printed box cutters arrived in my office late in September I shut my door and pondered - what do I do now?  Eventually I went in to see my new boss, he came from the Bergen side of the merger so we were not yet well known to each other. We looked, we mused, he said an expletive and then we agreed that the box cutters would not be used at the upcoming convention.  

We exhibited at the convention in October.  I have no memory of what we gave away.  We had our first AmerisourceBergen national sales meeting in Nov.  Dec. was pretty hectic as we worked to know our new colleagues.  In early in January, 2002, my new boss invited me to sit and chat. To be clear, it wasn't just the box cutters, there are lots of reasons - but the box cutters didn't help.  You see, during that meeting my new boss told me the newly combined company no longer needed my services.  I walked out the door and in a few weeks and became a consultant.  

But, I kept a handful of box cutters.  I used one to open a box the other day.  I like them, they are small, they are hefty and they do a great job of cutting open boxes.  But, ordering 5000 for the convention was a mistake, not in planning, or thinking, but in the fact that; life happens!  Bad things happen to good people.  

The real point is, as a pharmacy owner, as a parent or a co-worker, you are going to make mistakes.  Sometimes the consequences are minor, you adjust and you move on.  Other times the consequences are huge.  But, the response is still the same, you adjust and you move on.

Here's hoping something I shared here will help you Do More & Be Better.