SPOTLIGHT
PHARMACY'S NEW BEST FRIEND Pet medicine is a treat to this pharmacy’s business
M
ichael LeMasters has always had a heart for animals,
access to these products,″ LeMasters said. ″It's
especially for rescue dogs. His closest companion is a pocket
a matter of a pharmacy manager talking to the
pitbull named Stella, but he likes to call her Shadow because she
wholesaler and saying, 'Can you help me out with this?'″
never leaves his side.
considered the Big Three in the veterinary world. ″With a little bit
″My dogs have always been the center of my life,″ he said. So
it was only natural for the owner of Pierpont Landing Pharmacy
He said there are animal med wholesalers that could be
of research, a pharmacy owner can figure out who those are and
in Morgantown, West Virginia, to start treating the furry members
reach out to them.″
of the family along with their humans. ″You're taking care of the
community as it is. Why not afford their pets the same level of care?
People are still adjusting to the idea of getting meds from
Why not take care of the entire family?″
pharmacies rather than veterinarians. It took some convincing for
patients who have been getting theirs from the same place for so
The service is a huge benefit to patients who otherwise might
Getting started was the toughest part for Pierpont Landing.
not be getting the kind of care that only a community pharmacy
many years. Pet owners also like the convenience of delivery from
can provide. ″It can be a tremendous asset to the community
online pharmacies and didn't realize Pierpont Landing would deliver.
because it's a patient population that is often served by online
″We have had a lot of conversations, and we did a lot of
pharmacies,″ LeMasters said.
marketing,″ he said. Eventually, he broke through. ″As the service is
advertised and as you build that relationship in the community, you
When he began offering veterinary medicine 10 years ago,
he didn't know of any other community pharmacies doing it.
take care of one pet owner who then turns around and tells their
And even now, he wonders why more haven't hopped on board.
friend what you did for them and they tell their friends.″
″There's a ton of opportunity out there for pharmacies. If you
aren't doing it, why not?″
Once he got started, incorporating the meds into his workflow
was straightforward. ″The orders are treated the same. You're
Pet prescriptions circumvent the greatest cause
doing the same virtualization review, the same allergy checks, the
of pharmacy profit woes. All of them are
same QA process that you're going to do on any prescription that
paid for with cash. ″There's no switch fee,
rolls through your pharmacy,″ LeMasters said.
no DIR fee, any of these clawback fees,″ LeMasters said. ″That alone is worth it.″ Pet meds allow you to substantially grow your patient base with very little work and investment. Not only do you get new business from additional family members of
St
el
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your current patients, but you also attract new patients who are looking for better service and more affordable meds for their animal companions.
UP AND RUNNING Because pet meds were exclusively dispensed at veterinary offices for so long, finding a supplier willing to sell them to pharmacies used to be the greatest challenge. But as the market has opened up, access has become easier. ″Many of the wholesalers that pharmacies deal with day in and day out are starting to have more
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pbahealth.com/elements
5 BEST-SELLING PET MEDS AT PIERPONT LANDING PHARMACY 1. Prednisolone (Prednistab) tablets 2. Pimobendan (Vetmedin) chewable tablets 3. Carprofen chewable tablets 4. Deracoxib (Deramaxx) chewable tablets 5. Grapiprant (Galliprant) tablets
