Return on Investment Calculators

Clinical Pharmacist Return on Investment Calculator

Pharmacy Technicians Return on Investment Calculator

Who Benefits from This Insight?

Recognising the benefits of integrating Clinical Pharmacists and Pharmacy Technicians is essential for various healthcare professionals focused on practice efficiency and operational management. These insights are particularly valuable for:

• GPs (General Practitioners): As primary care providers, GPs can greatly benefit from the GP practice efficiency improvements these roles bring, allowing them to focus more on complex patient cases.
• Practice Managers: Key in ensuring the administrative and operational success of practices, they play a crucial role in assessing cost-saving measures and improving workflow.
• ARRS (Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme) Users: Practices utilising ARRS funding need to maximise their resource allocation for the greatest impact for their patience.
• Remote Pharmacists: Professionals working in primary care and PCNs align their services with practice and PCN goals, supporting patient care improvement and healthcare cost savings.
• Clinical Directors: Leaders responsible for shaping clinical strategies across networks, focusing on optimising service delivery and practice performance.
• Healthcare Administrators: Staff who handle policy, compliance, and day-to-day operations benefit from insights on cost-effective solutions and healthcare resource management.
• PCN Staff: PCN staff, such as administrators and care coordinators, benefit from the expertise of Clinical Pharmacists and Pharmacy Technicians, who play a pivotal role in managing medication reviews and reducing errors. This enhances the overall quality and safety of patient care within the network.
• PCN Managers: PCN Managers are instrumental in coordinating primary care services and resource allocation across multiple practices. They can leverage these roles to meet strategic goals like improving patient access and achieving financial sustainability across the network.
• PCN Operations Managers: Focused on the smooth day-to-day functioning of PCNs, these managers benefit from integrating Clinical Pharmacists and Pharmacy Technicians to optimise workflows and reduce inefficiencies, ensuring seamless coordination between practices.
• PCN Digital Transformation Managers: Responsible for implementing digital solutions within the network, these managers find that Clinical Pharmacists and Pharmacy Technicians support digital transformation goals. By incorporating these roles, practices can better manage e-prescriptions, medication reviews, and patient data analytics, enhancing efficiency and innovation.

The ROI Calculator

The ROI calculator is designed to help GP practices, PCNs, GP Federations and healthcare providers estimate potential healthcare cost savings and GP workload reduction when commissioning Clinical Pharmacists and Pharmacy Technicians. This tool provides valuable insight into how these roles contribute to medical practice optimisation, allowing decision-makers and stakeholders to assess their financial and operational benefits. By understanding the ROI, practices can make more informed staffing and budgetary decisions, ultimately enhancing efficiency and patient care.

How to Use the Calculator

Using the calculator is straightforward:

• Input Hours: Enter the number of hours per week you plan to commission for either a Clinical Pharmacist or Pharmacy Technician.
• View the Results: The calculator will display the estimated monthly cost savings and the amount of GP workload reduction.
• Interpret the Data: Use the results to understand the impact these roles can have on your practice’s overall performance and budget. This will help guide decisions on resource allocation and strategic staffing.

The Value of Clinical Pharmacists and Pharmacy Technicians

The inclusion of Clinical Pharmacists and Pharmacy Technicians offers significant advantages as part of healthcare staffing solutions. These roles are integral to easing GP workload reduction, allowing GPs to dedicate more time to complex cases and direct patient care. By managing medication reviews, medicines related consultations, and patient education, Clinical Pharmacists and Pharmacy Technicians support a smoother, more effective workflow within medical practices.

Beyond reducing GP workload, these professionals contribute to patient care improvement by ensuring accurate medication management and enhanced patient support. This not only optimises the practice’s and PCNs operations but also promotes better health outcomes and patient satisfaction.

Additionally, these roles play a crucial part in healthcare resource management, enabling practices to allocate time and resources more effectively. By integrating Clinical Pharmacists and Pharmacy Technicians, practices can enhance overall practice efficiency and create a more streamlined approach to patient care, which is vital for maintaining high-quality services in an increasingly demanding healthcare environment.

Benefits of ARRS Funding for Practices

The Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme (ARRS) provides a strategic opportunity for practices to enhance their teams by commissioning ARRS roles in primary care, such as ARRS clinical pharmacists and ARRS pharmacy technicians. This funding scheme is designed to help practices meet the growing demands of primary care, optimise patient services, and achieve better outcomes while maintaining financial sustainability.

ARRS funding utilisation allows practices to offset the costs associated with hiring Clinical Pharmacists and Pharmacy Technicians, creating significant cost savings. By leveraging this scheme, stakeholders such as practice managers can implement healthcare solutions that streamline operations and ensure that GPs can focus on more complex cases, thus achieving effective resource allocation.

For practice managers, PCN Managers and PCN Clinical Directors incorporating ARRS-funded roles offers several strategic benefits:

• Expands services without compromising budgetary constraints.
• Supports better patient care through enhanced staff capabilities.
• Distributes workloads more effectively across the practice.

By integrating ARRS clinical pharmacists and ARRS pharmacy technicians, practices can:

• Improve operational efficiency.
• Enhance patient care and satisfaction.
• Support overall practice growth and sustainability.

These roles form an essential component of practice manager healthcare solutions, fostering comprehensive practice development and improved patient outcomes.

Example of Cost Savings: Case Study: Buckinghamshire PCN

Background

Buckinghamshire PCN, serving a population of 80,000 patients, faced mounting challenges in delivering consistent clinical pharmacy services. The demand for GP appointments overwhelmed existing resources, resulting in long patient wait times and constrained access to essential healthcare services. Recognising the need for strategic intervention, the PCN sought to integrate Clinical Pharmacists to optimise workflows, enhance patient satisfaction, and reduce GP workload.

Intervention

By commissioning Clinical Pharmacists to provide key services such as electronic repeat dispensing and comprehensive medication reviews, the PCN successfully addressed its operational inefficiencies. These roles played a pivotal part in managing medication-related tasks, reducing the administrative burden on GPs, and empowering patients with improved access to critical healthcare services.

Outcomes

Over the course of the intervention, Buckinghamshire PCN achieved remarkable results:

• GP Time Saved:
  Clinical Pharmacists liberated 9,120 GP hours annually, equivalent to 760 hours per month. This allowed GPs to focus on complex patient cases and improve their work-life balance.
• Cost Savings:
  Assuming a proportional cost-saving benchmark of £8,000 per 80 GP hours saved per month, the PCN achieved £76,000 in monthly savings or £912,000 annually.

Resource Allocation and Planning:

For healthcare commissioners and practice managers, PCN Managers and Clinical Directors strategic resource allocation is key. Allocating funds towards deployment of Clinical Pharmacists and Pharmacy Technicians helps practices achieve:

• Optimised Budget Use: Investing in these roles ensures that financial resources are used efficiently, balancing cost savings with the improved quality of patient care.
• Enhanced Practice Performance: By reallocating tasks and responsibilities, practices can focus on high-value activities that drive both financial stability and superior patient outcomes.

Incorporating Clinical Pharmacists and Pharmacy Technicians into a practice’s staffing strategy is an essential step for robust medical practice financial planning. The initial investment in these roles often leads to significant cost savings and more effective use of healthcare resources, benefiting both patients and the practice’s financial health.

Enhancing Primary Care Efficiency

Integrating Clinical Pharmacists and Pharmacy Technicians into healthcare teams plays a crucial role in boosting primary care efficiency and optimising skillmix. These professionals support practices by handling various patient care and medicines optimisation related tasks, which in turn helps streamline workflows and improve the quality of care provided to patients.

Streamlined Workflows

• Task Redistribution: By delegating tasks such as medication reviews, patient education, and medicines management to Clinical Pharmacists and Pharmacy Technicians, GPs can concentrate on more complex cases. This reallocation leads to improved GP practice efficiency and better use of clinical time.
• Improved Coordination: Clinical Pharmacists often collaborate with other members of the multidisciplinary team to ensure continuity of care, reducing duplication of efforts and potential delays in patient treatment

Strategic Approaches for Practice Leaders

For clinical directors and PCN managers, adopting effective staffing strategies that include Clinical Pharmacists and Pharmacy Technicians is essential for maintaining optimal performance. These roles enable practices to offer comprehensive patient care while managing resources effectively. The result is an environment where GPs, supported by these professionals, can provide more focused and impactful care.

Integrating these roles not only improves primary care efficiency but also enhances patient outcomes and maximises practice potential.

Decision-Making Considerations for Practice Leaders

When practice leaders, such as GPs, practice managers, and clinical directors, are considering the integration of Clinical Pharmacists and Pharmacy Technicians, there are several key factors to evaluate. These decisions impact both the financial and operational aspects of a practice and require a strategic approach.

Key Considerations for Practice Leaders:

• GP Staffing Solutions: Understanding how these roles fit into the broader staffing model is essential. Clinical Pharmacists and Pharmacy Technicians can reduce GP workload by taking over specific patient care and administrative tasks, allowing GPs to focus on complex cases and enhancing the practice’s overall productivity.
• Financial Implications: For financial officers and finance leads involved in healthcare budgeting, the cost of deploying these roles should be weighed against the potential savings and efficiency gains. Practices need to assess the return on investment (ROI) and ensure that the expenditure aligns with long-term financial goals.
• Operational Efficiency: Integrating these roles contributes to streamlined processes and optimised workflows. Practice managers should consider how adding Clinical Pharmacists and Pharmacy Technicians can improve day-to-day operations and patient throughput, forming part of comprehensive healthcare solutions.
• HR and Recruitment Strategies: HR managers need to focus on recruitment strategies that attract skilled Clinical Pharmacists and Pharmacy Technicians who can effectively support the practice’s needs. Proper onboarding and training are crucial to ensure these professionals can seamlessly integrate into the team.
• Policy and Compliance: Policy makers responsible for healthcare staffing need to ensure that the deployment of these roles adheres to regulations and supports strategic goals. Compliance with local healthcare policies and guidelines ensures a smooth integration that benefits the practice without legal or operational challenges.

By carefully considering these factors, practice leaders and stakeholders can make informed decisions that align with their practice’s financial and operational strategies. The addition of Clinical Pharmacists and Pharmacy Technicians can support robust GP staffing solutions, facilitate practice manager healthcare solutions, and align with broader healthcare budgeting and recruitment objectives, ultimately enhancing patient care and practice performance.