Total Quality Management: Supporting Pharmacy Employees
Paint a picture in your mind of a traditional independent pharmacy - most likely the shelves are dust free, OTC products are neatly aligned, and a welcoming waiting area is fully equipped with coffee and light snacks. Now let's walk behind the counter - miscellaneous drug bottles, cotton, shuffled papers, and pens are probably scattered everywhere. Does this look like your pharmacy?
As you know, presentation is key when it comes to providing a WOW customer experience. It's likely you've already mastered it in the front of the house, but what about the back? You're probably thinking presentation doesn't matter behind the counter because your customers never go back there, right? WRONG! If your pharmacy looks like the one described above, your internal customers, your employees, are constantly being exposed to undesirable work conditions. If you want your internal customers to thrive within the 4-walls of your pharmacy, you need to be sure the working environment is supporting your employees.
Clean to inspect, inspect to detect, detect to correct, and correct to perfect
Employee work areas must be clean and orderly. Just like in the front of the pharmacy, everything must have a place and everything must be in it's place. When the work environment is clean, it makes problems and errors more evident and then they can be fixed in a timely manner.
- Sort - separate the necessary and unnecessary items in the work place
- Remove - dispose all unnecessary items
- Organize - create a place for all necessary items so they are easy to find
- Clean - eliminate trash, debris, dust, and dirt in the pharmacy and front the shelves EVERYDAY
- Standardize - clearly identify, document, and post the housekeeping guidelines in the pharmacy
- Maintain - develop systems that promote flawless execution (see example below)
- Continuously Improve - management needs to audit the systems and directly involve employees on a regular basis.
Color Tray System - a few of our pharmacies use a color tray system to visually control the prescription filling process and keep counters clear of clutter. As patients bring in their prescriptions or or refill request, the order is placed in the appropriate colored plastic tray.
For example--John comes into the pharmacy and wants to wait for his prescription. The employee with the initial contact places his request in a green tray and gives it to the computer tech. Sara says she would like her prescription delivered, her request then goes into a white tray. As the requests are filled, the basket moves along with the process and are reorganized according to priority. At the end process, it is dismantled and the contents are put back into the appropriate places (bottles on the shelves, prescriptions to be filed, and the completed rx bag is placed in the appropriate filing system). With this system, everyone behind the counter is aware of the level of priority for each prescription and the counters will be kept clear of clutter because all of the contents are kept in the tray throughout the process.
- Green - waiting in the store
- Yellow - will return within an hour White - delivery
- Red - normal priority/later in the day
- Orange - later in the week
- Pink - Incomplete/problem/error
A byproduct of a having a clean environment is the customer's outlook on the pharmacy. If everything is neat and in it's place then the customer sees an inviting 4-walls pharmacy. More importantly, they will associate the cleanliness and order with health and wellness. Think about fast food restaurants and the cleanliness of the bathrooms. If the bathroom is disgusting, does it make you wonder what the food preparation stations look like? What are people thinking about your establishment?
Directly from Dan
In addition to a clean environment, listed below are additional ways Dan Benamoz, CEO and Owner of Pharmacy Development Services and Owner of two independent pharmacies, creates a positive employee culture:
- Hire Eagles, not Turkeys.
- Spiff up break area more representative for Eagles - fragrance diffusers, leadership books, industry magazines, motivational artwork and quotes, team photos, communication board, etc.
- Spiff up restroom more representatives for Eagles - the restroom is not a storage room!
- Budget $60 a week to stock the break room with healthy groceries - oatmeal, fruit and vegetables, beverages, cold cuts, etc.
- Implement a loan program that provides up to one week's pay at zero interest. The loan is paid back through payroll deductions over six months.
- Have an educational assistance program - pay for your employees to continuously widen their skill set.
- Create a 4-walls “safe house” where no negativity is allowed. You want your employees to feel good about themselves, have fun, and enjoy coming to work.
- Without being nosy, ask your employee's what's going on in their life. Let them know you are there to help them if needed.
- Ask your employees about their dreams and let them know you want to help them achieve their dreams also since they are helping you.
- Turn the pharmacy into a teaching facility. Help them acquire more marketable skills.
- Start the 5 quarters praise program where it is your goal to move 5 quarters from one pocket to the other by the end of the day. You are allowed to move one quarter each time your commend an employee.
- Display an organization chart that shows how important each employee (especially the cashier) is to the success of the pharmacy.
- Wash and fill-up the employee's car
- Distribue gift cards to the local grocery store
- Host a party to celebrate pharmacy successes
Remember, the way you treat your employees is the way they treat your customers. Providing clutter-free work stations and a positive working environment will ensure they are providing a WOW customer experience 100% of the time.
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