In this white paper, you’ll discover how real-time technologies transform safety, efficiency, and enterprise value in pharmacy operations through the Intelligent Medication Ecosystem.
The path medications take from manufacturer to point of care is complex and often spans the globe. It’s also subject to any number of shortages, delays, and diversions. Any weak points in this path are a liability that could negatively impact stakeholders and potentially compromise patient safety. Meanwhile, hospital systems and the technologies that power them are changing.
Supply chain shortages and disruptions are an ongoing concern for manufacturers, who are often seen as responsible for “fixing” shortages by increasing supply or overcoming disruptions.
Several regulations enforced by the FDA require manufacturers to follow strict standards when manufacturing, packaging, and labeling medications. More recently, the DSCSA has placed additional expectations on how medications must be labeled and tracked. Separate regulations are required for controlled substances that focus on licensing, production quotas, security standards, and tracking. These regulations ensure that medications are safe and traceable once they enter the market.
Drug Supply Chain Security Act (DSCSA) – tracking and labeling
Current Good Manufacturing Practices (CGMPs) – good manufacturing practices
Controlled Substances Act (CSA) – licensing, production quotas, security standards
Drug manufacturers are adapting their medication labeling practices. This includes upgrading from traditional barcodes to tags that include RFID. Sometimes called “the barcode of the future,” RFID tags use small radio frequency identification devices to track and identify products down to the item level. Unlike barcodes, which must be manually scanned, RFID tags don’t have to come in direct line-of-sight with sensors. This allows the RFID tags to be counted and monitored with minimal effort.
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Central to this evolution is the concept of interoperability, or the ability of systems to “speak” to each other, and advanced analytics that maximize the data being fed into the system to support decision-making.
Pharmacies don’t just take ownership of medications when they are delivered at the hospital loading docks. They are responsible for moving medications between hospital facilities and departments and ensuring crash carts and medication cabinets are adequately stocked.
The top challenges of pinpointing medication stock and location to avoid shortages today include:
Pharmacy staff must have the tools they need to work smarter while navigating a complex and dynamic environment. And that begins with data centralization and interoperability. This will take the place of disconnected systems that keep data siloed.
Technology must be present to link systems and create a connected environment that allows for seamless data exchange.
Together with more granular medication tracking, interoperable smart systems can help generate meaningful and actionable insights. Specifically, this integration can give hospital pharmacy systems the framework required to establish one source of truth for medication management and the insights needed to replace time-consuming, manual steps with automated workflows.
Each care provider is united by a common purpose—to administer medications to patients safely.
Ensuring the medication being given to a patient is correct and that it is not counterfeited, expired, or recalled is essential to medication administration. However, we know providers might juggle multiple manual steps in a hectic environment when administering medications, leaving room for human error.
In addition to administering medications, care providers are responsible for documenting their use—potentially in multiple places, such as the patient’s electronic health records (EHR) and the hospital billing system. If a controlled substance is being administered, additional records are required, along with follow-up disposal steps when medication is left over.
While these records are essential to the hospital’s operation, they represent multiple hurdles that can impede workflows, increase burnout, and hamper the patient-care provider relationship.
Even if providers have the medications they need, the functionality of the medication dispensing systems can impede their work. A clunky workflow that makes it hard for anesthesiologists or anesthesiology techs to get to medications quickly can cost precious time.
Experts believe the ongoing opioid crisis in the U.S. is a major driver of diversion in medical facilities. Healthcare providers (HCPs), including physicians and nurses, are 10-15% more likely to abuse substances, including opioids and other prescription medications, than the general public.
Diversion can have far-reaching impacts on patients, HCPs, and medical systems, including the risk of death from overdose, removal of critical medications, and erosion of trust in medical providers.
For patients, there are the additional risks of receiving inadequate care or exposure to unsafe materials, such as contaminated syringes or medications that have been tampered with.
We anticipate that integrating medication management systems with EHRs and hospital billing systems will be essential in the near future. This level of centralized integration has the potential to remove manual steps from provider workflows while providing visibility into the chain of custody and administration of medications. Instead of retroactively filling in medication information, potentially hours or days after the administration takes place, hospital staff can more seamlessly record all necessary information at the exact moment care takes place.
Medication errors can be fatal, and many current workflows focus on preventing them. Technology systems enabling providers to function confidently and spend more time on patient care will be essential in the future. Smart medication administration stations have the potential to facilitate safe medication administration by flagging when medications are expired, presenting clear medication information on a screen, and providing a clear station inventory of what medications are on hand at any given moment.
Today’s medication pathway is more complex—and more critical—than ever before. As the demands on health systems grow, hospitals must evolve beyond fragmented workflows and legacy tools. Modern digital technologies offer the opportunity to transform medication management from a series of disconnected handoffs into a unified, intelligent ecosystem.
At the heart of this transformation is the patient. Safe, effective, and equitable care depends on real-time visibility, proactive decision-making, and seamless coordination across every step of the medication lifecycle. By embracing innovation and elevating standards, healthcare leaders can reduce waste, improve compliance, and, most importantly, safeguard patient outcomes in every moment that matters.
Discover how real-time technologies are transforming the medication lifecycle—from supply chain to patient care.
Learn about RFID tracking, pharmacy automation, and smarter, safer workflows.