Comments on: A Pharmacy Transformation and Lean Concepts http://www.leanblog.org/2008/08/pharmacy-transformation-and-lean/ Mark Graban's leanblog.org - Lean Healthcare, Lean Thinking, Lean Manufacturing, Toyota Production System Thu, 09 Feb 2012 22:59:58 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Cartier http://www.leanblog.org/2008/08/pharmacy-transformation-and-lean/#comment-3893 Cartier Tue, 19 Aug 2008 18:29:00 +0000 http://leanblog.bigbigdesign.net/2008/08/a-pharmacy-transformation-and-lean-concepts/#comment-3893 What happens when the robot breaks down? What happens when the robot breaks down?

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]]> By: andrewmc http://www.leanblog.org/2008/08/pharmacy-transformation-and-lean/#comment-3890 andrewmc Sat, 16 Aug 2008 13:02:00 +0000 http://leanblog.bigbigdesign.net/2008/08/a-pharmacy-transformation-and-lean-concepts/#comment-3890 I am working with a pharmacy that has just installed a robot.<br/><br/>The robot is loaded simply by putting every box of medication that arrives in to a chute. There is a little conveyor along the bottom of the chute that takes the medications in to the robot where it scans the bar code. If it can not read the bar code it spits them out.<br/><br/>Once they are in the robot randomly distributes them across the three aisles. So it ensures that there are equal amounts of all of the drugs in each aisle but randomly distributed within the aisle.<br/><br/>The robot rotates the stock by expiration date and picks on a first in first out basis.<br/><br/>A pharmacist places a order in the electronic Rx system, this is communicated to the robot which picks the drugs and then sends them by conveyor back to the PC on which they were ordered in a little under 15 seconds. Once piece flow.<br/><br/>The robot is located about 30 feet away from the pharmacy, the other side of a corridor but all the conveyors run above the ceiling and the drugs are delivered swiftly to the correct PC.<br/><br/>The system of gates is very much like that used at Terminal 5 at heathrow, though somewhat more successfully.<br/><br/>I have to say I am quite impressed with the technology, it eliminates picking errors, ensures only one drug at a time for a patient is picked, saves stocking items on shelves and then picking them.<br/><br/>They are some very clever pieces of kit.<br/><br/>Cheers<br/><br/>Andrew I am working with a pharmacy that has just installed a robot.

The robot is loaded simply by putting every box of medication that arrives in to a chute. There is a little conveyor along the bottom of the chute that takes the medications in to the robot where it scans the bar code. If it can not read the bar code it spits them out.

Once they are in the robot randomly distributes them across the three aisles. So it ensures that there are equal amounts of all of the drugs in each aisle but randomly distributed within the aisle.

The robot rotates the stock by expiration date and picks on a first in first out basis.

A pharmacist places a order in the electronic Rx system, this is communicated to the robot which picks the drugs and then sends them by conveyor back to the PC on which they were ordered in a little under 15 seconds. Once piece flow.

The robot is located about 30 feet away from the pharmacy, the other side of a corridor but all the conveyors run above the ceiling and the drugs are delivered swiftly to the correct PC.

The system of gates is very much like that used at Terminal 5 at heathrow, though somewhat more successfully.

I have to say I am quite impressed with the technology, it eliminates picking errors, ensures only one drug at a time for a patient is picked, saves stocking items on shelves and then picking them.

They are some very clever pieces of kit.

Cheers

Andrew

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