In these tough financial times, directors of pharmacy are being asked to control expenses and do more with less. In truth, there may be many opportunities to apply the "do more with less" mantra to our everyday living. We are probably much more likely these days to spend an afternoon playing a game of Monopoly, rather than heading to the stadium to take in a football game. However, it is a greater challenge to apply this concept to pharmacy practice where ensuring patient safety must remain at the core of every process.

Nonetheless, there are many opportunities to make practice changes that not only benefit patient safety, but also positively affect the pharmacy's bottom line. In past issues we have run articles that share stories from hospital pharmacies that have successfully improved their finances with myriad approaches, including designing a mail order pharmacy, using software to simplify 340B ordering, and automating revenue integrity programs.

This month we continue this theme with articles providing guidance on expanding pharmacy technician roles in compounding and implementing drug cost control measures.

Additionally, if you have been concerned by the new regulations requiring pharmacy oversight of your institution's radiopharmaceuticals, Patricia Kienle shares tips for making this a manageable process.

Economic indicators continue to be a mixed bag as we head into the new year, making it clear that those facilities taking an aggressive approach to financial management today will emerge as the strong and progressive institutions of tomorrow.

All the best,

R. Mitchell Halvorsen
Publisher

P.S. We would like to congratulate Ellen King, the 2009 winner of the Going Green survey!
Ellen is the director of pharmacy at Memorial Hospital in Bainbridge, Georgia. As the random drawing winner, Ellen received a Sony Home Theatre System.

Digital Edition

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