Pharmacies are facing a rising tide of healthcare consumerization, patient information leakage, growing prescription volume and chronic understaffing. Fortunately, pharmacy automation solutions are swelling beneath the surface to keep inpatient and outpatient pharmacists afloat. 

The U.S. Census Bureau projects that 20% of Americans will be over 65 years old by 2030, with pharmacy automation expected to reach $9.9 billion that year. Patient and ID safety solution providers like PDC are ready.

What is Pharmacy Automation?

Pharmacy workflow automation relies on a pharmacy management system (PMS) that synchronizes robotic storage, dispensing, packaging and inventory of ingredients and completed medications. Behind it all, though, is a quiet but critical contributor: a tightly calibrated ecosystem of automated pharmacy supplies, including pharmacy labels and associated label printers, as well as barcode scanners. Below, we explore how these supplies help pharmacists achieve worry-free medication administration as well as automation’s four strategic benefits: safety, speed, satisfaction and scalability.

1. High-quality Labels Drive Patient Safety

Scanning barcodes on high-quality pharmacy labels anchors verification for medication administration safety and bolsters HIPAA compliance. Both top-of-mind concerns for pharmacists. To enable pharmacy automation to address safety and regulatory expectations, suppliers like PDC provide automation-ready labels consisting of healthcare-specific:

1. Materials: Thermal paper or synthetic materials (e.g., polypropylene and vinyl) for durability
2. Print methods: Our inkjet labels are available in a variety of sizes for drop-in use with Epson printers 
3. Adhesives: Permanent or removable, allowing clinicians to detach labels as care dictates 
4. Types: Roll and fan-fold labels in direct thermal or thermal transfer variants; custom shapes and sizes support personalized medication
5. Specialty labels: Tamper-evident, multi-flag, HIPAA-compliant and clean room designs
   • Direct thermal labels with plastic cores simplify the USP 797-compliant integration of labels into clean rooms
6. Compliance-specific labels: DSCSA-compliant designs serialize pharmaceutical products and identify controlled substances via GS1 DataMatrix (2D) barcodes

To further allay pharmacists’ concerns, PDC offers healthcare Code Barcode Readers that cover every base from central fill pharmacy automation and in-hospital robotic dispensing to big-box pharmacy checkout.

• Need proof of Code’s material-handling performance? This high-volume application validated that Code tech can simultaneously read 300+ 1D and 2D barcodes moving 4.9 mph within seconds, at a 99% success rate.  

2. Speed without Sacrificing Accuracy

Automation helped one pharmacy address patient leakage by cutting Rx turnaround from a full day to 20 minutes. To reduce wait times while ensuring accuracy through automation, pharmacists rely on barcode scanners, pharmacy labels and medical printers specifically engineered to integrate with dispensing machinery. The results enable high-speed output while tracking and validating prescriptions:

• Direct thermal printers: Cost-effective and efficient, they print crisp barcodes and patient information on labels; a small footprint facilitates task-based placement versus working around a shared, centralized printer
• Inkjet printers (ColorWorks type): Used for color-coded or visually enhanced labeling. PDC’s EPS4100 continuous label offers on-demand, high-resolution printing in full color for immediate medication communication. You can easily use these labels with your Omnicell or Pyxis compounding software. 
• Purpose-built healthcare barcode scanners: Reliable barcode scanning connects automated workflows by reading any barcode type on any surface. Pharmacists use compact scanners, like Code’s CR1500, for tasks such as validating prescriptions before delivery

3. Satisfied Pharmacists, Successful Therapies

Pharmacy staff work smarter with reliable, clinician-centric printer systems and communication tools. In patient rooms or at the service counter, instructions are clear and easy to understand — no smudging or guessing. To further support patient adherence, communication labels augment instructions with at-a-glance dosing and storage details.

PDC’s solutions provide additional value to pharmacists by streamlining tasks, allowing them to resume being proactive patient care advocates. Moreover, automation-derived time savings enable pharmacy personnel to pace AI-driven advancements in personalized medicine, further improving therapy success.

4. Built to Scale: Supporting Complex Pharmacy Workflows

First and foremost, automation’s accuracy, safety and labor gains will enable all pharmacies — whether mail-order, central fill or in-hospital — to scale with patient volume. Additionally, machine learning and AI are driving healthcare personalization, increasing the complexity of dosing and patient communication. PDC, and other suppliers, help future-proof and economize pharmacy operations for long-term viability with:

• EHR migration expertise to help pharmacies incorporate more automated processes and connect seamlessly with their facility’s EHR and PIS systems
• An expansive range of prescription labels, medical seals and more that easily drop into automated pharmacy workflows and PIS systems, such as these Epic Willow-compatible labels
• GPO contract compliance through the free ValuePlus^® Program for cost savings and standardization that support automation readiness

You can trust that pharmacy automation will continue evolving rapidly to stem the tide of pharmacy challenges. You can also trust that PDC’s printers, labels, medication scanners and ID solutions will continue powering automation, allowing pharmacists and pharmacy technicians to focus on positive patient outcomes. Bringing worry-free workflows to your pharmacists and clinicians begins by contacting PDC. Our patient ID and data capture experts will help you streamline processes and economize operations.