US Pharm.
2006;31(9):1.
For
most people, "Those Lazy, Hazy Days of Summer" conjures up the images of the
beach, hot weather, vacations, and possibly Nat King Cole, who arguably made
that song famous. Summertime is also the season when most of the major drug
wholesalers hold their big customer meetings, and this past summer was no
exception.
I was fortunate that my
schedule allowed me to attend the AmerisourceBergen Corporation's (ABC)
National Healthcare Conference and Exposition, held in Las Vegas. Having spent
some 15 years as the owner of two retail pharmacies, I can attest to the value
of my wholesaler during those years. And while the services that drug
wholesalers offer today have vastly increased since the years when I owned my
stores, they still position themselves as a business partner to retail
pharmacists.
R. David Yost, CEO of ABC,
said it best in his opening remarks to the more than 7,000 attendees at the
ABC meeting: "We believe that the community pharmacist is key to the future of
health care, and we are proud to offer programs and services dedicated to
helping them improve the care they deliver to patients, as well as grow their
business." I particularly liked the way he balanced the professional and
business sides of retail pharmacy.
While pharmacy continues to be
professionally rewarding for thousands of pharmacists, it has been
unfortunately marred by the fact that operating a retail drugstore in today's
managed health care environment has become an economic nightmare. In fact,
when a recent survey conducted by the National Community Pharmacists
Association asked pharmacists what they were most personally worried about,
more than half responded reimbursements, cash flow, and staying in business.
Operating my drugstores thirty years ago was for sure a challenge at times,
but I empathize with today's pharmacy retailers who are battling financial
instability on a daily basis. Even through some very difficult years, my
wholesaler was by my side and never gave up on me. This was best exemplified
when one of my stores burned to the ground; it was the wholesaler who helped
us get back on our feet.
Today's wholesalers are bigger
and offer greatly expanded services in the areas of technology and marketing,
and they are somehow able to maintain their small-company image, offering the
same close interpersonal relationships with their customers. They understand
the problems and needs of their clients and move quickly to help retailers in
distress. They also help level the business playing field between the Davids
and Goliaths by offering smaller stores affordable state-of-the-art technology
and unique marketing opportunities, making it easier for them to compete in a
very crowded retail pharmacy marketplace.
Wholesaler programs and
products are a definite plus for the community pharmacies they serve. Despite
the heavy consolidation of drug wholesale companies over the years, today's
wholesalers have not lost their passion for the profession of pharmacy and the
pride in seeing their clients succeed. In today's challenging business
climate, it's nice to have that kind of partner on your side.
Harold E. Cohen, R. Ph.
Editor-in-Chief
To comment on this article, contact
editor@uspharmacist.com.
