Page 38 - RP-MAY-2021

PHARMACY PROFILE 33 DIABETIC SOCKS GENTLE GRIP SOCKS ENERGISING SOCKS TRAVEL AND FLIGHT SOCKS PLANTAR FASCIITIS SLEEVES ATHLETE’S FOOT SOCKS EXTRA WIDE SOCKS RAYNAUD’S SOCKS WORK SOCKS VIEW THESE AND OTHER FANTASTIC IOMI ® Footnurse PRODUCTS AT OUR APP BOOTH #287 P H: 03 9369 1700 E: sales@licensedsocksaa.com.au W: www.licensedsocksaa.com.au Supplied in Australia under license exclusively by LicensedSocks andApparelPty Ltd. However, as was the case nationally and internationally, “mask sales and personal hygiene sales went through the roof”. “I can’t say it was the best experience, but certainly one that I’m glad we went through,” she continued. “It’s always through the tough times that we find out what our team is made of, and I’m so happy to be part of my amazing team. “We thankfully didn’t have any Covid scares in our store, but everyone was on high alert and we had multiple hygiene measures in place to ensure customers would feel safe and looked after – screens, multiple hand washing stations, and hand sanitiser for both staff and customer use at many points around the pharmacy. “The biggest thing that stood out for me is how willing all the staff were to make sure that our high-risk patients were taken care of, by offering delivery and going out of their way to ensure that they had everything they needed (including some grocery shopping).” TWC Hornsby’s most popular service is online ordering. “We currently use MedAdvisor, the Cross \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\[a TerryWhite Chemmart online ordering system\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\] and recently started using a new service called Chemist2U,” Ms Kurimeti said. “Online ordering became more popular last year when we had all the lockdown restrictions, and has continued to be a booming service. “I think people really like that they can order their medications – and now OTC and NDSS items – and these are ready for them to collect when they walk into store. We made it a little special with cute, environmentally friendly click-and- collect bags and stickers for fun.” Pharmacy in 2021 Touching on the trends that will impact the pharmacy for the rest of 2021 and beyond, Ms Kurimeti says she believes these will involve a combination of developments from the past few years. “We’ve been incredibly busy and we hope this will continue,” she said. “There’s still a certain amount of awareness tinged with fear that permeates any crowded situation, but as time goes by and especially as the Covid vaccine rolls out successfully, that will pass and we’ll look at getting back to business as usual. “We’ll definitely keep the hygiene measures that we’ve implemented in place for both customer and staff peace of mind. I think the atmosphere is going “It’s always through the tough timesthatwefindoutwh tour team is made of, and I’m so happy to be part of my amazing team.” to change to one of relief and we can look towards a brighter future, having overcome one of our generation’s biggest medical hurdles.” Ms Kurimeti says she hopes the rest of 2021 will be significant in terms of the store developing a whole new Webster packing system. “We’re looking at increasing our customer base in this area and hope to be able to provide this service smoothly and raise awareness about the benefits,” she said. “It’s pretty snazzy,” she continued, referring to the equipment. “I had one of my staff members marvelling at the ease of packing and the bright new look – it’s like a little book – and she said she wants to use a Webster pack now. I’m really excited about this. “Virtual dispensing has been something I’ve been really keen to implement, and the new system is looking incredibly promising, especially when coupled with our robot. I’ve been working pretty closely with Webster packs since my intern year 10 years ago, so this is a big change for me personally and, so far, I’m loving it.” On store-specific plans, Ms Kurimeti said: “We plan on doing staff training so that our services, such as CPAP and compounding, are more accessible to customers. Other than that, it’s all about growing the pharmacy – streamlining dispensing with more MedAdvisor patients, making sure all our customers are up to date on their vaccines and ready to roll when their turn comes for the Covid vaccination, and increasing basket size with those little add- on sales.” RETAIL PHARMACY • MAY 2021