The increased digitization of our society in the 21st century has had a huge impact on many divisions of our day-to-day lives. One sector that’s been affected enormously, is the world of healthcare-especially in the area of pharmaceuticals. The latest of these trends in the tech-med field, is pharmacy automation. Indeed, the Global Pharmacy Automation Market has increased its revenue by billions over the past decade, and is forecasted to continue its growth at a CAGR of 8.63 percent for the 2012-2016 period.
It’s impossible to ignore the massive advantages of automated pharmacy solutions, which is why we at TechNavio doubt that there will be any major slowdowns in the market for the next few years. Automation saves pharmacists’ time by taking over many of the labor-intensive tasks of pharmacists, which in turn encourages them to counsel patients about their medications, gives them more time to practice pharmaceutical care.
Indeed, one of the few hindrances of automated pharmacy solutions, is actually an advantage: the the wide variety of systems to suit the needs of different pharmacy workflows. Although these varied information systems allow for more diverse functions, they also tend to confuse the end-users, resulting in a negative impact on the market. Consequently, several end-users opt for more basic workflow automation systems to meet the requirements of their pharmacy.
Another issue is that automation works almost too well, and has indirectly contributed to human errors as pharmacists have started relying too much on tech solutions.
Despite these challenges however, a few market trends are likely to offset any dips in the industry’s revenue. Namely, an increase in customer support initiatives and initiatives toward increasing customer base.
Most vendors in the Global Pharmacy Automation market are providing all-inclusive customer support packages with the purchase or rental of pharmacy automation systems, featuring staff technicians who are available toll-free 24 hours a day, 365 days a year for personalized technical support and operational guidance. Many key-players in the market are also organizing workshops designed to educate end-users on the capabilities of pharmacy automation systems.
Ultimately, once the technology becomes a standard integration in the pharmacy field (and we have no doubt it will), the odds of the marker slowing down are slim to none. With that said, we are incredibly excited to see where the Global Pharmacy Automation Market goes in the next few years-not only in terms of revenue, but in the role that it will play in transforming the entire world of healthcare as we know it.
For more information, view our 2012-2016 report on the Global Pharmacy Automation Market.
