A recent article in Pharmacy News raised concerns from a pharmacist about the viability of the community pharmacy model. My own position is that the community pharmacy model will likely be prevalent for a long time to come!
Here's a few reasons why I believe that the Community Pharmacy Model works.
- A Wide Range of Models:
Community Pharmacy has adapted over recent years and now presents a differentiated offering. With the presence of discounters, nursing home specialists, hospital specialists, medical centre pharmacies, shopping centre pharmacies, online pharmacies and community pharmacies - consumers now have a wide range of offerings available. As such, the argument for new avenues is already addressed through pharmacy innovation and change. - Access:
There are approx 5,300 pharmacies spread throughout Australia - servicing both metropolitan and remote locations. As a comparison, there are only 488 Commonwealth Bank Branches in Australia; 864 Woolworth stores (as of 2011); and only 4,419 Australia Post outlets in Australia! Clearly, Australia's access to medicines through the pharmacy network is greater than access to many other basic services. - $$ Viability:
At the end of the day, pharmacies continue to make money. Despite the hype, ROI's on pharmacy are still around 22% - 26% (compound, per annum) for the average community pharmacy - with some sites earning bigger returns. These returns are still evident despite the recent round of generic price reductions. - Demand for Ownership:
Pharmacy ownership is still sought after by many pharmacists and demand to buy a pharmacy (in particular community pharmacy) continues to be strong.
I certainly understand that there are a wide range of opinions in regards to the viability of the community pharmacy model. But from my perspective, the numbers indicate continuing good returns, and the signs are still positive.
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