Case Study: Reliant Long Term Care Improving care through technological advancements Pharmacy: Location: Beds serviced: TM oneMAR implemented: Date interviewed: Contact:
Reliant Long Term Care Washington, IA 1,500 February 2012 September 2012 Todd Thompson, Co-owner www.reliantlongtermcare.com
Organization Reliant Long Term Care is an industry leader providing pharmacy, technology and clinical solutions. Their mission is to provide customer care by leading long term care facilities through a transition process by offering technological advancements, particularly to establish compliancy for Short Cycle Dispensing (SCD) and electronic Medical Administration Record (eMAR). Reliant has approximately 14 employees in their long term care division, with 7-8 people in each of two departments: data entry and filling. They serve in the region of 1,500 beds within 22 facilities, most of which are in a rural setting.
Business challenge The medication management system for Reliant has evolved significantly, starting off with Opus cassettes and blister cards and then moving forward with multi-dose strip packaging and eMAR. While utilizing the former, primary challenges to the organization were wasted time, no ‘real-time’ changes, and lack of accuracy. Since implementing Catalyst oneMAR, Todd has noticed a significant change in both cost and time savings as well as an increase in accuracy and safety in the facilities. The time allocated for labor in preparing multi-dose strip packaging versus the preparation of blister cards has been reduced by over 50%. Additionally, the consumable costs associated with strip packaging are significantly less expensive than that of the blister cards they used.
Implementation & training Reliant implemented oneMAR on February 9, 2012. Co-owner Todd Thompson stated the entire process was “incredibly easy.” They chose two employees to be ‘Super Users,’ one from each department and dedicated one week to training with trainers from Catalyst. Management at Reliant made an effort to choose Super Users who were highly skilled in their respective roles. The Super Users spent 1-2 hours per employee for subsequent training; ensuring new trainees understood how oneMAR interacts with their operations and how to utilize it successfully. Todd indicated that the notion of having two Super Users from different departments within the organization helped with the overall success of the implementation and training experience for the rest of the staff. The staff at Reliant have reacted positively to the implementation of oneMAR. The organization is focused on attracting and encouraging young employees, many of which are very receptive to utilizing technology in a pharmacy setting. The staff is excited and inspired to be part of a technological movement within the health care sector.
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Transitioning to an eMAR As Reliant began to use oneMAR, many of their facility customers transitioned to oneMAR as well. According to Todd, an established relationship based on trust is the best tool when presenting oneMAR. More specifically, Todd meets with facility leaders and decision makers to do a personalized demo. From his experience, “oneMAR sells itself - normally after any demo the home is sold.” When adding a new home onto oneMAR, Reliant dedicates one week for implementation and typically there is a 1-2 week learning curve.
Impact at the facility A significant improvement in both cost and time savings have been the primary positive factors for many of the facilities that are serviced by Reliant and utilize oneMAR. The most common positive outcome has been faster and shorter med passes, resulting in a positive re-allocation of resources. Todd indicated the accuracy during med passes has been “virtually perfect with no chance of error.” The onus of human error has been relieved from the nurses in part due to the ‘real-time’ connectivity feature allowing a facility to view inventory levels, thereby eliminating the possibility of running out of medication and creating undue emergency situations. In addition, oneMAR allows nurses and care givers to spend more time on resident care as opposed to focusing most of their time on medication administration. Finally, some facilities were able to reduce staffing levels. Moreover, many facilities have been reluctant to the idea of adopting a short cycle, particularly the notion of seven day fills; however, after a 1-2 month period “they ease into it and appreciate the change”.
Impact at the pharmacy An overarching objective for Reliant is to create and foster healthy and longstanding relationships with their facilities. oneMAR has allowed this relationship to become stronger, particularly through the means of communication. Todd predicts the communication between the pharmacy and the facilities is 30%-40% faster; oneMAR has been “seamless” and allows the pharmacy and facilities to “always be on the same page”. Furthermore, oneMAR has become one of Reliant’s best marketing tools. Within a six month period they increased their business by 50%; the number of beds they service went from 1,000 to 1,500. Todd attributes the significant increase to be solely driven by their use of oneMAR. Additionally, they are able to market themselves as being compliant with the upcoming SCD legislation. oneMAR has provided Reliant an opportunity to successfully market to facilities that they never would have had an opportunity to engage with without the competitive edge of technology afforded by Catalyst and oneMAR. Since many of the nearby facilities are in rural areas, the ‘real-time connectivity’ between a facility and the pharmacy allows for a significant time saving factor in regards to communication. Most notably, the transportation and servicing by pharmacy staff to a rural facility has greatly improved. oneMAR has allowed communication to become increasingly personal and interactive as opposed to being blind and one sided, thereby, aiding Reliant in achieving its overarching objectives.
“Not only has oneMAR brought our pharmacy new business, it has made a significant positive difference in our pharmacy operations and allows us to provide a better service our customers.” – Todd Thompson, Reliant Long Term Care Technology Solution Partner: Catalyst is a leading provider of medication safety and workflow solutions. Through the use of time sensitive bar-coding, oneMARTM ensures that the right medication is given to the right resident at the right time, increasing safety and efficiency. oneMAR’s inventory tracking simplifies short-cycle prescription delivery and pharmacies and healthcare facilities benefit from improved communication, extensive reporting, and safe, standardized medication practices. For more information, visit catalystrms.com.
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