How iA is at the Forefront of an Evolving Pharmacy Landscape

With the help of technology and digital innovation, the pharmacy industry has rapidly evolved in the past 25 years. Moving away from manual processes and paper-driven workflows, the role of the pharmacist—and nearly every entity within the supply chain—is shifting in real time.

“The first movement, when I started here at iA, was how do we increase the quality and efficiency of the prescription fulfillment process?” said Alecia Lashier, chief automation officer and executive vice president at iA. “At that time, except for mail order and a small number of central fills, nearly all fulfillment was in store, in your corner drugstore. The process was very manual.”

With Lashier’s experience in pharmacy and centralized fulfillment solutions, she’s seen time-consuming, manual workflows transform with the help of technology. From increasing revenue amid decreased costs to fill prescriptions, iA has dedicated its work to improving quality and efficiency while also driving technological advancements.

Diving deep into iA’s role in centralized fulfillment, as well as Lashier’s extensive background in the pharmacy industry, she joined Drug Topics in an exclusive interview to provide insight into the future of pharmacy. As the pharmacy landscape continues to evolve in real time, learn about how companies like iA are keeping up and helping pharmacies stay competitive.

“We have a term here: pharmacy of the future,” continued Lashier. “I think a lot of others use that phrase as well. What that looks like to us; pharmacies will be expected to do more to compete. Patients want that level of convenience that they're becoming accustomed to. We're learning in the pharmacy industry that we need to be able to adapt and accommodate patients’ choices.”