Asetion

Pharmacy Automation Systems

Written on November 25, 2011 – 4:48 pm | by admin

Traditionally, pharmacists dispensed medications by hand using a spatula and tray. As more medications became available – and prescribed, pharmacists had to hire help and work longer hours just to keep up with the demand. This brought upon the development of machines to count medications.

The first digital machine used to count tablets and capsules was developed in1967 in Manchester, England, and that technology was exported to the United States.

A counting machine could count medications accurately, and much faster than a person. These machines were called – interchangeably, drug counters, capsule counters, tablet counters, or pill counters.

Soon after, the machines became useful in the supplement manufacturing industry, because manufacturers realized they could count and bottle their medications much faster using a pill counter.

Machines developed in the 1990s and early 2000s had an onboard computer to perform verification and information storing.
Currently, more than 35 countries use tablet counters, including non-pharmacy sites. In the U.S., machines now have a computer interface capable of communicating with the pharmacy’s inventory and workflow software. Further, the machines are used to verify all prescriptions dispensed to patients.

New developments in pharmacy automation systems include hands-free dispensing, enclosed robot mechanisms, and labeling systems. This allows pharmacy staff to dispense hundreds of prescriptions per day while managing the pharmacy’s other business.

The main benefits of using pharmacy automation systems are increased productivity, improved quality of life for pharmacists and technicians, and improved patient safety. The use of a counting and sorting machine reduces the risk of human error. Additionally, the small space required by most units allows the pharmacy to save space while dispensing several hundred of prescriptions per day.

Current pharmacy automation systems such as those which are available at cornerstoneautosys.com incorporate car coding and touch screen technology. Popular systems automate the pharmacy’s 60 most commonly dispensed medications, to reduce the pharmacist’s workload. Some machines are able to count pills as well as blister packs.