Abstract

RETAIL PHARMACY VS DIGITALIZATION: BRIDGE BETWEEN MEDICINE AND COMMUNITY

A. Nithin, D. Sai Ram, K. Bharath Kumar, K. Avinay, Mrs. N. Ramya Krishna*

ABSTRACT

Retail pharmacies represent the most accessible and frequently visited healthcare touch points within the community. This study investigates the evolving landscape of retail pharmacy by analyzing current patient need trends, commonly prescribed medications, and prevalent health hazards, with the goal of evaluating customer satisfaction. This study investigates retail pharmacy practices by analyzing prescription patterns from across multiple pharmacies, highlighting frequently dispensed medicines and evaluating both rational prescribing and role of pharmacists in safe medication use. Retail pharmacies serve as a vital connection between healthcare providers and patients, supporting rational medicine use in the community. Pharmacists play a crucial role in verifying prescriptions, educating patients, and preventing medication errors, especially where documentation is insufficient. This study highlights theimportance of enhanced documentation and systematic pharmacist counselling to improve medicine safety and efficacy in the retail pharmacy setting. This article synthesizes key data and insights of retail pharmacy prescription patterns and pharmacist roles. The study integrates insights from contemporary research on retail pharmacy practice and digitalization to contextualize findings within the rapidly evolving pharmaceutical environment.

Keywords: prescription analysis, drug utilization, pharmacist’s role, rational prescription, patient safety, quality improvement, medication errors, pharmaceutical inventory, acute care, chronic disease management.