Steps in Dispensing Prescription or OTC Drugs

Pharmacy is also a business, money can be involved in every transaction. Sales and profit are secondary main goals of a drugstore, which mean the more the buyers and customers are, the more the sales revenue can accumulate per day. Thus, once a customer stops to a drugstore, the establishment must see to it that the customer's needs are available in them and must be given or satisfy, so that another time that customer needs drugs again he shall go back to your drugstore. Also the flow of the dispensing process should be fast but accurate, and proper courtesy and respect must be shown to impress customer that consequently achieving their loyalty. In the Philippines dispensing process is done within 10-15 minutes depending on the number of prescribed drugs, volume of people and the capacity of manpower a drugstore has.

Steps in Dispensing Drugs

1. The customer will approach the pharmacy and call the attention of one of the personnel.
2. The pharmacist or pharmacy assistant will greet the customer and must sustain good manners all through the transaction.
3. The personnel will ask the patient about his/her prescription or drug needs.
4. After the presentation of prescription/s or details of drug/s needed, the personnel shall check the availability of stock on the shelves, the price, the expiration date and other generic equivalence of that brand or drug/s.
5. The prescription/s or drug/s will be priced. Allow the customer to budget his/her money to decide if he/she can afford the brand of that drug/s.
6. Introduce to him/her other generic equivalence or other drugs that contain the same generic name, strength, dosage form and alike, which can help him/her to save money or budget his/her money.
7. Take time to let the customer to decide what price of drug he/she will buy and the quantities to be sold. Total the amount incurred by the customer and ask for his/her payment. (If the patient is senior citizen, ask for requirements, and deduct the respective percentage).
8. If decision was made, prepare the decided drug/s (with the cheapest price) to be bought by acquiring them from the shelves. Blistered or foiled packaging will be cut in the pieces requested by the customer and/or if the packaging is loose count the number of the drug needed in the tablet counter and placing them into compact plastic bottle, wide-mouthed amber bottle or small capsule cellophane that placing the information of the patient, information of the drug and quantity of the drug. Check the drug before and after removing from the shelf if it is the required drug. Check also for expiration of the drug and stability of it.
9. When the drug is prepared proceed to billing.
10. Take back his/her change if there is and counter-check the drug's name, count and quantities infront of him.
11. Counsel the customer about the instruction given to him/her by the physician, the storage condition, and other information about the drugs.
12. End the transaction by speaking “Thank you!” and “Come back again!”. The prescription shall be filed and kept.