Counting pills by hand is a time-honored and established practice in pharmacies all over the US. Sometimes, it is effective, efficient, and accurate. However, there are times when hand counting is not any of these things. Mistakes can be made and go unnoticed, leading to inaccuracies in filled prescriptions.
If mistakes occur and are caught, the person counting the pills has to start over, causing inefficient use of time. When these mistakes happen, the entire hand-counting process becomes ineffective.
There is an answer to the problems that occur with hand-counting: automatic pill counters. All pharmacies should consider adding an automatic pill counter to their practice because it is error-proof, cost-effective, and time-saving.
1. It Is Error-Proof
Despite paying close attention and trying their best, humans are likely to make mistakes at some point when counting pills by hand. This can lead to a customer receiving fewer or more pills than they were prescribed. On the other hand, as long as a pill counter is used as described in the user manual, it is guaranteed to be error-proof.
Simply put, an Automatic Pill Dispenser will not miscount. Pill counters have specific technologies, such as unique gate-flow designs, that ensure there is no possibility of too many or too few pills being accounted for.
2. It Is Cost-Effective
While it may seem that hand-counting when filling prescriptions is the cheapest way to go, this is not always the case. When factors such as correcting mistakes and the cost of the employees’ time are considered, it is typically more cost-effective to purchase an automatic pill counter.
Though the expense might feel greater up-front, it is likely to be cheaper in the long run. Pill counters range in price from around $2,500 to $6,500, depending on the make and model chosen.
Over time, the cost of the machine filling a prescription becomes cheaper than the cost of the employee’s time filling the prescription. Overall, an automatic pill counter is considered to be a valuable addition to community pharmacies.
3. It Is Time-Saving
When mistakes in hand counting are made, and the person making the mistake realizes what has happened, they are forced to start over. A person may also need to start over with hand-counting if they become distracted or are interrupted while counting.
These mistakes, distractions, and interruptions all lead to precious time being lost and customers being forced to wait longer for their needed medications. By switching to an automatic pill counter, a form of pharmacy automation, this loss of time due can be eliminated and prescriptions can be filled faster.
The addition of an automatic pill counter to any pharmacy is beneficial because pill counters are time-saving, cost-effective, and error-proof. The use of a pill counter will not only allow for more prescriptions to be filled in a given amount of time for less money but also it will allow the pharmacists and pharmacy technicians to focus more on other tasks, such as customer care and consultations.
Overall, this is certain to result in an improvement in satisfaction levels for customers, a greater feeling of success and fulfillment for employees. When employees and customers are both satisfied and the correct medications are being dispensed in the correct amounts, the result is a happier, healthier community.
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Girl on Fire
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