More and more pharmacies are using computers for emails and electronic communications with other professionals and now some are even communicating with their patients electronically. As more and more bandwidth is used, the broadband connections are more prevalent, especially the T1 lines . When most pharmacies used dial ups, satellite or slow frame relay connections, they are now upgrading to T1 connections and if there are multiple locations, some are even getting MPLS connections in order to connect the locations together and communicate more effectively. For back up solutions, a fixed wireless internet solution could be ideal for them.

According to the Journal of the American Pharmaceutical Association (JAPA), "when pharmacies have point-of-care workstations, pharmacists can demonstrate how and where patients can access high-quality information on a particular disease or health problem. Alternatively, pharmacists can invite the patient to bring in printouts from various health Web sites and assist in identifying those that offer useful information." Although there are few pharmacies capable of offering that type of service, the numbers are increasing.

JAPA continues, "As Internet-based technologies continue to evolve, pharmacists need to stay up-to-date with emerging applications that are likely to further impact the profession. For example, electronic prescribing (e-prescribing) is expected to become much more common in the next few years. Advocates of e-prescribing say the technology holds great promise for reducing medication errors, especially those resulting from illegible prescriptions. For pharmacists, e-prescribing offers several other potential benefits, including greater patient convenience, improved formulary compliance, and fewer disruptive callbacks from the pharmacy to the physician's office to clarify illegible prescriptions. Furthermore, by streamlining the dispensing process, e-prescribing could provide pharmacists with more time to provide counseling and pharmaceutical care."

All of the digital activities described above, as well as point of sale (POS), and submitting claims to insurance companies, that pharmacies are now performing need to use more broadband services. In order for pharmacies to be as productive and efficient as possible, they will need to have T1 services at each location with possibly wireless internet (wherever it is available) as back ups and MPLS services to connect their locations together.

If you have one or more pharmacies and would like to find out how to become more efficient and productive, please contact shopforbandwidth.com