The Journey to Zero-Error Medication Management

Scott Seidelmann
EVP and Chief Commercial Officer, Omnicell

As COVID-19 continues to impact healthcare across the care continuum, the need for solutions designed to help providers achieve greater visibility, control costs, and better manage an increasingly complex pharmacy supply chain is more important than ever.

Today at Omnicell-Illuminate 2020, the first-ever digital conference focused on technology-driven medication management, I had the pleasure to reveal a comprehensive look at Omnicell’s product roadmap and strategic vision for supporting customer success in achieving zero-error medication management.

In many other industries, technology investments are resulting in significant productivity improvements. Take the airline industry, for example. Just 30 years ago, planes were flown entirely by a human pilot, resulting in well-documented in-flight risks and costs. With the introduction of standardized automated flight control processes, planes can now fly on autopilot when necessary. And integrating that autopilot functionality with air traffic control systems provides greater flight visibility, helping to improve productivity and inflight safety.

In the world of medication management, pharmacists are both the pilot and air traffic controller. They depend on technology, intelligence, and visibility to avoid medication errors, supply chain delays, and clinical inefficiencies. You wouldn’t want your pilot or air traffic controller to wear a blindfold. And you definitely don’t want to impede visibility when it comes to managing medications. Omnicell’s Winter 2020 release is the next step toward the fully Autonomous Pharmacy, which is digitally transforming the industry to provide better visibility to pharmacy supply chain and allow pharmacists to work at the top of their license.

In the Winter 2020 release, which will be generally available in December, enhancements to Omnicell’s portfolio of solutions are streamlining workflows and expanding inventory management capabilities to drive improved outcomes and operational success. For example:

• New software functionality for XT Anesthesia Workstation is simplifying workflows in the operating room (OR) and perioperative settings, to simplify anesthesiologist workflows while providing an easy-to-use dashboard that gives pharmacy critical insight to accurately track and maintain “chain of custody” and other indicators for diversion.

• Omnicell One, a tech-enabled service delivered through the cloud, has expanded inventory optimization capabilities through the addition of medication stock indicators, provided through dashboards supported by clinical expertise, to help reduce medication waste, improve inventory turns, and decrease medication spending.

• Enhancements to Omnicell’s Central Pharmacy Dispensing Service offering include increased throughput for the Company’s groundbreaking pharmacy automation technology—the Omnicell XR2 system—as well as a new Professional Services offering to drive organizational change management and successful adoption of technology, processes, and workflows within Central Pharmacy.

These latest enhancements are transforming the healthcare customer experience by providing greater real-time visibility into medication inventory and day-to-day operations. The innovations are intended to help health systems better manage costs and improve efficiency, allowing them to reallocate time to focus on patient care initiatives that support better outcomes. Learn more about the Winter 2020 release in today’s press release.

Be sure to join us again on Thursday, Nov. 12 for Day 3 of Omnicell-Illuminate 2020. And check back soon for more details on accessing event replays.

DISCLAIMER

The views and opinions expressed in this blog are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any other agency, organization, employer or company. Assumptions made in the analysis are not reflective of the position of any entity other than the author(s). These views are always subject to change, revision, and rethinking at any time and may not be held in perpetuity.