How an Independent Pharmacy Improved Adherence and Increased Profitability Using Analytics
For Ben and Heather McNabb, owning and operating Love Oak Pharmacy isn’t just about running a business—it’s about serving their community. When he was 16 years old, Ben worked at the very same pharmacy, then called Eastland Drug Store. His experience led him to pursue a Doctor of Pharmacy degree. When he and his wife returned to Eastland, they purchased the drug store and dedicated themselves to bringing top healthcare resources to the community that had done so much for them.
Mixing Passion and Ambition
The McNabbs didn’t want their patients to feel limited by their zip code. To deliver the kind of care they wanted for their community, they knew they would need help. At the top of the list was finding a way to improve patient adherence. Beyond that, the McNabbs wanted to incorporate comprehensive patient care, increasing revenue opportunities from non-dispensing services.
Patient non-adherence is an ongoing challenge facing the entire pharmacy industry today. To combat it, Love Oak Pharmacy needed to identify and target specific areas of non-adherence among their patients. Once they knew what they were dealing with, they could develop a plan to rectify the issues and increase patient adherence. Unfortunately, they lacked the time and the tools to do so.
To bring comprehensive patient care to their pharmacy, the McNabbs hoped to introduce sustainable outpatient services, like flu shots and vaccinations. They also knew they needed to maintain (and potentially increase) their star rating in order to stay profitable. But they couldn’t just start a new program and hope for the best; they needed to determine where the immediate revenue opportunities were and which ones needed more long-term planning. They also needed to understand regional trends to figure out how best to grow their pharmacy.
They had the initiative. They had the drive. What they needed was a plan.
Invaluable Insights Through Analytics
To compete with larger chains like CVS, Walgreens, and even online giants like Amazon, independent pharmacies are finding new ways to stand apart. These pharmacies recognize that innovative, data-driven technology is the key to holding their own against the conglomerates. How? By improving pharmacy operations through analytics and insights and by giving pharmacists the time and tools to improve patient care. That’s exactly what Love Oak Pharmacy did.
As an American Pharmacies member, Ben McNabb was familiar with the benefits of the platform RxCOMPASS, powered by myDataMart. Within RxCOMPASS, the FDS analytics software examines a wide range of pharmacy information to offer critical business and patient insights. With complete transparency into pharmacy operations and patient care, Love Oak Pharmacy had a viable solution to help improve outcomes and put focus back on the customers in their community—echoing the pharmacy’s mission when Ben McNabb worked at there in his youth.
The introduction of a data-driven outreach platform would give the McNabbs and their staff the chance to nurture patient relationships, grow med-sync enrollment, and improve pharmacy. Also, the customized reporting tools would allow the McNabbs to tailor insights to make better business decisions. FDS provided the tools they would need to decide how they would want Love Oak to evolve as a community pharmacy.
With myDataMart insights, many of the McNabbs’ end goals would suddenly be within reach. Love Oak Pharmacy would be able to identify which patients could benefit from flu shots and vaccination services. They could add specialty services like diabetes counseling education and patient management. Higher star ratings would mean increased access to patients, lower DIR fees, and increased profitability. Lastly, the measurable data provided by RxCOMPASS could completely revolutionize operations and position the Love Oak name as a fierce competitor to larger brands—without losing the personalized touch.
Awards, Accolades, and Time Well Spent
Since implementing RxCOMPASS, the McNabbs and their pharmacy staff pinpoint high-value patients for targeted outreach. They identify non-adherent patients by plan. They target top prescribers and patient groups for focused marketing efforts. “RxCOMPASS is a huge asset in keeping our patients adherent and our business profitable,” explains Ben McNabb. “It has helped us prioritize our patient outreach by prescription value. That helps us achieve the highest ROI possible for each call.”
The RxCOMPASS technology has dramatically affected profitability for Love Oak Pharmacy, specifically within fill activity. According to software’s Refills On Time report, the pharmacy’s staff have:
- Conducted 540+ hours of patient outreach
- Gained more than 7,000 fills (averaging 2 per patient and 80 per period)
- Increased revenue by nearly $500,000 (approx. $22 profit per patient, $871 profit per period, and 14.8% increase in gross profit margin pre-rebate)
This transformation has the industry taking notice as well. In 2018, Ben McNabb was the recipient of the NCPA’s 2018 Outstanding Adherence Practitioner Award.
Most importantly for McNabb, myDataMart’s insights have freed him up to focus on the direction his business is heading. He now has time to provide individualized direct care for his patients. The evolution from patient maintenance to care coordination is a big step and reaffirms the original pharmacy’s mission of showing generosity while serving the community. “And the results are easily measured,” says McNabb, “which gives me peace of mind that our time is well-spent.”
Love Oak Pharmacy is a thriving, innovative practice in Eastland, Texas, 100 miles west of Fort Worth. With a deep commitment to patient adherence, the pharmacy team consists of over 20 dedicated providers, including husband and wife co-owners Ben and Heather McNabb.
