Answer to Question #148700 in Management for Sushil Bhagat

Question

Netmeds.com, one of the largest e-pharmacies claims more than 3.7 million customers
in over 610 cities and towns. The market size of e-pharmacies was approximately $512
million (Rs 3,500 crore) in 2018. It is predicted that there will be a compounded annual
growth rate (CAGR) of 63 per cent which will reach $3.6 billion (Rs 25,000 crore) by
2022. Explain how information systems help in managing the supplies of medicines by
online pharmacies and delivering them to customers.

Answer 1

A pharmacy information system (PIS) has many functions that facilitate the maintenance of the supply and organization of drugs. The PIS is used to reduce medication errors, increase patient safety, report drug usage, and track costs. A PIS is necessary for the hospital setting and can be utilized in many ways;

1. As a user interface, PIS can be used by pharmacists to organize and select multiple orders to place in a patient,s profile.
2. A PIS is very secure in the sense that different departments can only access a specific part of the system.
3. A data retention plan is very useful in keeping records for longer periods of time to enable physicians to understand the cost and usage of drugs.

A PIS has many functions for inpatient and outpatient management; it allows the pharmacist to identify the physician's order; validate the medication based on a drug -to drug interactions and timing of medications; and then dispense the drug for administration. This process helps to determine what is working and any changes required.