Using Clinical Services to Build Your Business

In this issue of Smart Retailing, we highlight changes underway in retail pharmacy, as community pharmacists continue to position themselves as valued community healthcare providers. This includes increasingly providing services like immunizations as well as offering new types of medication management and adherence programs. Retail pharmacies are also contemplating how to fit with newly emerging ACOs (Accountable Care Organizations) to improve patient outcomes.

With the delivery of more and different types of clinical services at retail, the relationship between pharmacist and patient grows stronger, resulting in better outcomes for patients and new revenue sources for pharmacies.

The opportunity to help community pharmacies use enabling technologies to develop deeper customer relationships is why I joined McKesson about two years ago as Senior Director of Sponsored Clinical Services.

Prior to joining McKesson, I spent about a decade at smaller companies that focused on helping community pharmacies make a meaningful clinical impact. I loved the mission of these companies and the work. But based on changes in the retail pharmacy landscape, I knew I could have an even greater impact by at McKesson.. This is because McKesson has a strong commitment to retail pharmacy, has tremendous resources, and has a unique collection of assets—including technologies, tools, and programs. In this role, I am able to pull together these assets and bring them to community pharmacies across the country. Ultimately, my job is to help you grow your business with new, integrated and user-friendly clinical programs that improve your patients’ health.

I hope you enjoy this issue of Smart Retailing and that it makes you think about different types of clinical services that might fit well in your pharmacy.

Darren O’Neil

Sr. Director, Retail Technology Innovation
McKesson U.S. Pharmaceutical