A pharmacy is usually one of the cornerstones of a community. It is the point of reference for everybody that needs to stay healthy and have their healthcare needs met after their doctors’ visits. Starting a small pharmacy is putting you at the center of your community’s needs.

Managing your pharmacy is very important to get right. It is a business unlike any others so you need to have some specific basics met. There are a few basics that you need to have covered to start out on the right foot. In this article, we will go over some of the things you need to get started.

1 – Refrigeration

Many of the medications that you will be getting from your local compounding pharmacy will likely have some strict temperature requirements. They often contain ingredients that can be quite sensitive and will need to be kept in special conditions to be effective and safe. When they are not, then they could be very dangerous and even simply not effective when the active drugs within them are no longer so active.

You will need to have the right refrigerators to handle the needs of all the different medications that you will be storing. Some need to be kept frozen and others at a constant temperature that is higher but consistent. Without these refrigerators then you will be faced with problems.

Even very common medications such as insulin have specific requirements for storage as do many of the latest Covid-19 vaccines. Make a list of all the types of medications that you will be storing regularly so you will understand what types of refrigerators and freezers you’ll need.

2 – PPE (Personal Protection Equipment)

It is extremely important to keep your employees and customers safe. You are responsible for providing a safe and healthy working environment for any of the pharmacists or tellers that work in your pharmacy. It is not only the right thing to do, it’s also the law.

This means that among other safety measures you must provide them with PPE. This is gear that is going to protect them against things like a virus, exposure to dangerous drugs or chemicals, and other issues.

They should have lab coats to stay clean but also safety goggles and gloves for when they have to handle any medications.

Not only do you need to provide these things, but you have to train them on how to properly wear their PPE. if they are wearing them improperly then it is likely that they will be ineffective.

3 – Measure racks

Precision when dispensing prescriptions is crucial. This is why it is important to have plenty of measure racks. These dosing racks will ensure that you are portioning out the drugs accurately so there won’t be any problems for your customer in getting the proper medications.

Speed is also important so you can get the prescriptions into the hands of your customers without delay. These racks will offer accuracy while also being fast.