“Working without this system is just unthinkable to us now” Owynn Baker - Holme Pharmacy
Golden Tote is a semi-automated repeat prescription process which can be accessed through your existing EMIS PMR. Since its inception it has transformed the dispensary of pharmacies up and down the country, making marked improvements in the accuracy, safety and efficiency of processes, all whilst reducing outgoings.
Owynn Baker has worked in the pharmacy industry for over 30 years, and currently manages Holme Pharmacy in York. He and his team have been using Golden Tote for just over a year, and in that time have found that semi-automated dispensing can drastically help them in all aspects of their pharmacy, from both a practical and business perspective. Owynn cited the changes in legislation and increase in volume as two of the key challenges which prompted the switch from manual to semi-automated dispensing: “The financial challenges we have faced have meant that we have needed to work differently in order to continue to perform. When I first started it was quite normal to have two or three pharmacists in one place, and that was without all of the other services, we literally just dispensed prescriptions as they came in.”
Golden Tote was brought to the attention of Owynn and his team after coming across the proposition on Numark’s website, and following a conversation with the Golden Tote team he was very keen to get it into practice. “I was familiar with the concept having used a similar system at a previous pharmacy, and I was all in favour of it because it makes such a massive difference. The issue we experienced with the previous system was the amount of time it took to come back, so you were originally looking at around a two day lead time. The advantage of Golden Tote is that it is so quick and straightforward, and it has made our lives much easier as a result.”
“I would recommend Golden Tote to other pharmacies without a shadow of a doubt”
It would be natural to have some reservations when switching to a different system, however Owynn had very few concerns and was instead eager to implement Golden Tote as quickly as possible in order to begin reaping the benefits. “Initially you do have that sense of a lack of control, but accuracy isn’t something we have struggled with. The hardest part of the job is the multitasking, and Golden Tote has been a godsend in that regard.”
Holme Pharmacy have placed great focus on delivering flu jabs for their customers, and the freedom which Golden Tote has given them has freed up time to administer a high volume of jabs whilst the technology takes care of a healthy portion of the dispensing work.
“We are only a small independent pharmacy, but because of Golden Tote we are able to offer a range of services, including over 1,700 flu vaccines. In the past there were some occasions where I’d spend all day in the consultation room, so this has been a great benefit for us in terms of adding value and increasing our push to deliver flu vaccinations.”
“Our business has seen around a 70% increase in prescriptions, and dealing with that volume would have been unthinkable without this technology. It has also benefitted us from a stockholding point of view as we are taking a step out by not having to unpack as many orders and taking it on and off the shelf.”
Time-saving is one of the major advantages of using Golden Tote, particularly at a time when pharmacies find themselves managing increased workloads and these sentiments were echoed by Owynn when discussing how it has supported him and his team: “The improvements from a time-saving perspective have been immeasurable, but for me personally I would easily say that half of my day has been released. It has given us the flexibility to focus our efforts on our flu service without compromising accuracy and efficiency elsewhere. I would recommend Golden Tote to other pharmacies without a shadow of a doubt. I think financially it has helped us too because we wouldn’t be able to offer the services which we do now without the freedom that it has given us, and it has meant that we are on top of things every single day. I can’t think why you wouldn’t use it, to work without this system is just unthinkable to us now.”
Want to learn more about Golden Tote and how this could work in your pharmacy?