A Shot in the Arm

Retail pharmacies could reclaim success by proactively addressing three of today’s most significant challenges

By Kathie Canning

The COVID-19 pandemic was a gamechanger for many U.S. retail pharmacies. In early 2021, the first phase of the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program launched, and a number of pharmacies nationwide began to offer COVID19 vaccinations for their communities.

The public turnout was nothing short of impressive. By mid-July 2021, Federal Retail Pharmacy Program participants in the United States had administered and reported approximately 112 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And many COVID-19 vaccine recipients began to view retail pharmacies as much more than just prescription fillers.

In fact, research from consulting firm Accenture, shows that 67% of consumers used expanded services from their retail pharmacy throughout the pandemic, said Tyler Slovick, managing director of the company’s healthcare group.

“Retail pharmacies experienced a one-in-alifetime opportunity to elevate their status as essential businesses, sustaining foot traffic and bringing new patients seeking health services to the store,” he noted. “They accelerated their shift toward becoming health care service providers, adding new nonprescription revenues in diagnostics and vaccination programs.”

But the party appears to be over. Many retail pharmacies are facing significant challenges tied to their vaccination programs—for COVID-19, shingles, influenza and more. But they could reclaim success by proactively addressing three of today’s greatest challenges.

Waning Demand

One major difficulty impacting retail vaccine programs is the greatly reduced demand for COVID-19 boosters, noted Wayne

Glowac, director of marketing for OneEvent Technologies, Mount Horeb, Wis.

“For a while, pharmacies were the ‘field of dreams.’ If you built it, they would come,” he said. “Unfortunately, there are people not coming back.”

Jason Ausili, Pharm D., head of pharmacy transformation for Fort Worth, Texas-based EnlivenHealth, said identification of vaccine candidates is particularly critical for retail pharmacy locations that depend primarily on an “on-demand walk-in-visit model.” He noted that modern clinical software solutions could not only help retail pharmacies identify these candidates but also “help close gaps” for patients who haven’t completed a multi-dose series of shots.

Another plus? The right technology solution could minimize the burdens associated with vaccination protocol compliance.

Ausili noted that EnlivenHealth recently debuted the Amplicare Clinical Solution, which provides an “easy end-to-end clinical workflow” for retail pharmacies.