Software powers hub and spoke dispensing at pharmacy group

Pharmacy hub and spoke specialists Centred Solutions have supported the Peak Pharmacy group to implement a dispensing hub.

Centred Solutions’ FLOWRx software connects the automated dispensing line and warehouse management system to the pharmacy group’s 135 stores, allowing hub and spoke dispensing.

Peak Pharmacy invested in a multi-million pound dispensing hub at its new headquarters in Chesterfield and opted to use Knapp automation for its medication dispensing line, which supports the ability to pick and process products.

The pharmacy group started processing first orders using the hub and spoke system in June 2024 and it is now operational in 82 of its pharmacies, with plans to onboard the remaining 53 stores by October 2024.

Paul O’Hanlon, commercial officer at Centred Solutions, said that while Knapp are specialists in logistics automation they are not pharmacy specialists.

“As a result, they don’t provide an interface between the pharmacy store and the Knapp system, that’s where we come in,” he said.

“Very few pharmacy groups have their own IT team or the knowledge of what is required to build the software needed to connect pharmacy stores to the Knapp solution and the warehouse management system that the automation uses.

“At Centred Solutions we have the expertise and experience to develop the software required to enable hub and spoke dispensing.”

Centred Solutions’ software allows pharmacy stores to send an order to the hub which can then be run through its dispensing line.

The software batches patient orders and provides all the patient labelling data for the production line.

This then allows the automation to produce patient specific totes with labelled and bagged medication which can then be sent back to the store as completed bags ready to be booked back into the patient medication record for collection.

The software also notifies the store when the order has been completed and is on its way back to the hub.

Darryl Dethick, head of business transformation at Peak Pharmacy, said: “The Peak Pharmacy hub project has been a real collaborative effort and it is a great example of what can be achieved when different technology and automation companies work together alongside pharmacy.

“We have all brought our different levels of expertise to the table and have created a cutting edge solution which is taking volume out of our stores so that staff have more time to spend on face to face patient care”.

Joe Cattee, managing director at Peak Pharmacy, added: “We’ve been able to work with the likes of Centred Solutions and Knapp to create the opportunity for us to survive during very real economic challenges for pharmacy.

“We must engage with other ways to support our patients, rather than just focusing on prescription fulfilment.

“By using technology we can offer so much more to our patients across the country and support them with their requirements”.

Meanwhile, Pharmacy2U announced in April 2024 that it has launched a prescription order-tracking service which aims to provide customers with greater visibility of their orders.