How AI can help pharmacists

Artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming virtually every aspect of society, and healthcare is no exception. In pharmacy specifically, AI services such as ChatGPT may significantly improve medication management by providing pharmacists with tools that empower them to make evidence-based clinical decisions. For example, an AI model can be used to streamline workflow, identify adverse events and drug interactions, and provide medication therapy management (MTM) services.

Community pharmacists are often overloaded with increasing numbers of prescriptions, complex drug regimens, and administrative tasks—along with staff shortages. Technological advances that make daily responsibilities faster and easier could help ease the pharmacist’s workload in several ways.

3 ways to use AI to help patients

Let’s explore how pharmacists can use AI services to help patients.

1. Streamlining workflow

AI can automate certain aspects of pharmacy workflow, allowing pharmacists to focus more on patient care. One way in which AI models can help is through inventory management. Proper inventory management is crucial to running a successful pharmacy, and it can be very involved. For many pharmacies, inventory management involves going through all stock on hand, throwing away expired medication, comparing current stock to the desired listed amount, and placing orders to replenish stock. This process can be time-consuming for some. AI technology can help optimize inventory by predicting drug demand, placing orders to stock drugs according to predicted demand, and minimizing drug waste.

According to Exploratory Research in Clinical and Social Pharmacy, AI can also be used to automate dispensing processes. Robotic dispensing systems help prepare prescriptions by packaging and labeling medications to improve efficiency.

2. Improving patient safety

By streamlining workflow, pharmacists can focus more on patient care. AI technology also supports clinical decision-making by analyzing patient data and checking for drug interactions, dosage errors, or allergies. Pharmacists can use this information to make interventions that can reduce adverse reactions and medication errors, which are the most common and preventable causes of patient harm.

Pharmacists understand that medication adherence and patient safety go hand in hand. It can be difficult to identify patients who are nonadherent and address compliance successfully. AI technology may help in this area. Some of the current AI systems being studied to increase medication adherence include mobile phone applications that provide medication reminders and dosing instructions, reminder systems that send refill reminders via text message, and chatbots that send relevant medical information via text message. While more research is needed to understand the long-term impact of these AI-powered systems, they can be utilized to support pharmacists in promoting medication compliance. 

3. Supporting MTM services

One of the most impactful ways pharmacists can use AI to help patients is through medication therapy management (MTM). MTM is a set of services provided by healthcare providers, most commonly pharmacists, aimed to improve patient outcomes. MTM services often include evaluating patients’ responses to therapy, reviewing patients’ medications, recognizing drug interactions or any medication errors, counseling patients on the proper use of their medications, and educating patients on lifestyle changes that may improve their condition.

In a 2023 study, ChatGPT, an AI language model, was 100% effective at assisting in MTM cases. The AI program successfully identified drug interactions, provided treatment recommendations, and created general management plans. However, it’s important to note that ChatGPT did not recommend specific dosages, and its success rate was not as high with complex patient cases. Overall, researchers believe AI can help pharmacists identify drug interactions and create MTM plans to improve MTM efficiency. However, there are still privacy and security concerns with patient data.

Potential challenges

Despite AI becoming more popular in the healthcare industry, there are still a number of challenges that come with its integration. First is the cost. AI programs can pose a financial challenge for some, especially independent or smaller pharmacies. Another drawback is the comprehensive training required for pharmacy staff. AI programs are technology-based, which means there can be a learning curve that comes with it. It may take some time for staff to learn how to use it properly. Lastly, as mentioned above, there are still privacy and security concerns with AI technology. If AI is being used to improve patient safety or assist with MTM services, it must have access to patient data. At this time, it’s unclear if privacy issues have been addressed to protect the safety and confidentiality of patient information. If pharmacists are utilizing AI programs, they have to ensure they comply with federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) regulations.

Liability is also a concern if your pharmacy is using AI. Pharmacists may be liable for any errors that occur through AI programs, whether they be dispensing errors, medication errors, or clinical oversight. It’s up to the pharmacy staff to ensure that all medications and clinical recommendations are accurate and in compliance with the law.

The bottom line

AI technology has the potential to transform pharmacy practice. Community pharmacies may consider utilizing AI to streamline their workflow, improve patient safety, or help with MTM services. Nevertheless, there are challenges associated with its use, and pharmacists must ensure their use of AI complies with all applicable pharmacy laws.