THE USE OF COMPUTER IN PHARMACY

INTRODUCTION
The computer has become a very common tool in all areas of science
and technology. With the proliferation of the Internet and the
developments in computer technology and manufacturing, the ratio of
price to performance of computers continues to decrease. This has
resulted in the development of number of computer applications. The
field of pharmacy has immensely benefited by the use of computer and
will continue to benefit as the pharmacist's gain more familiarity with
computers. The complete field of pharmacy requires computers. Some
of the important areas where computers are useful are new drug
discovery, drug design, analysis, manufacturing of drugs and hospital
pharmacy. Other than these, computers helps pharmacist collaborate
with other professionals, which is very essential in today's research
work. It also provides solutions for time consuming manual task.
Various hardware and softwares have been developed without which
drug discovery, designing, manufacturing and analyzing would
become virtually impossible. Further development is still in progress
which will make pharmacist's job easier. The more important fact is
that they will enable us to discover new drugs for the complete care of
dangerous of diseases like aids, cancer etc. and reduce the cost of
production of drugs for diseases which are easily cured. Computers
are also useful for hospital pharmacist and in telemedicine. A lot has
been done and a still has to be done for improving the computer
facilities for pharmacist.
Communication:
Computers are used within pharmacies to facilitate
communication. From email to other Internet-based messaging
systems, online communication allows pharmacists and other
pharmacy staff to keep in contact both within their own organization
and within the professional community. Some pharmacy companies
have their own Intranet systems for internal communications over the
Internet.
Prescription Processing:
Prescription processing is invariably one of the main activities
going on within a pharmacy on a day-to-day basis, and computers are
used to make this process more reliable and efficient. Both the
customer service side of pharmacy operation and the dispensing
aspect are today carried out through the use of computing systems.
Pharmacy computers also handle customer service activities such as
sales and cash handling within the retail operation.
Information:
Having access to the Web via pharmacy computers is
something that has enhanced the ability of pharmacists to carry out
their duties to a higher standard. As well as giving the pharmacy staff
access to the vast store of information that is available on the Internet,
including those on specialist pharmacy resources, the Internet
connects pharmacists to their peers on a global scale. Professional
communities for pharmacists operate on-line, creating an atmosphere
that is conducive to professional development.
Databases:
Computer databases for information about medicines, and
medical treatment in general, are used within pharmacies. These
database systems allow pharmacy staff to find out information about
any potential conflicts or health-care problems in a prescribed
treatment, as well as information about the details of any particular
medicine the pharmacist needs to know more about. This information
may include ingredients and potential effects as well as research and
scientific data.
Now-a-days computers are used in pharmaceutical industries,
hospitals and in various departments for drug information, education,
evaluation, analysis, medication history and for maintenance of
financial records etc. They have become indispensable in the
development of clinical pharmacy, hospital pharmacy and in
pharmaceutical research.
Computer has various uses in the field of pharmacy. In the modern
world pharmacy is used in computerized systems. For example all the
medicine and equipments are maintained by computer monitoring
application. Such as medicine’s temperature control, medicine expire
data detection, control of surgery equipments by computers. Basically
any kind of data-management can be done by computers.

Pharmacy can create its own chamber to keep the medicine in safe.
Secure temperature control is needed so in that case computer has its
inevitable action. Some special features of medical term logy like
DNA/RNA test specimen can be placed in the pharmacy by computer
software management. Special kind of harmful bacteria fungus which
is needed for medical purpose is suitable placed by computer locked
path chamber.

Detection of medicine and other drugs can be done by computer

system quickly and effectively. Secure payments monitoring systems
can be installed by computer application so those customers feel
secure in payments procedure. Customer history in the purchase of
medicine and equipments can be done effectively by computers critical
patience summary, patience history; medication can be monitored
wisely and securely by computer application.
Cornelia, kidney, blood sample is placed in a secure chamber and it is
maintained by computer systems. Temperature control, pressure
managements are done by computers regularly.
So my irrefutable denouncement is that computer has outstanding
scope in the arena of pharmacy industrial. If we can serve these kinds
of computer systems in our pharmacy sector then our pharmacy
industrial will prosper in a prosperous way.
As with most health-care processes, pharmacy operations have been
significantly changed by the advent of digital and computing
technology. Computers are used for various tasks within a pharmacy,
both in terms of how pharmacists carry out their duties and handle
patients. Pharmacy computing systems make use of resources, such
as the Internet, although many pharmacies use custom-made software
systems to carry out their daily activities.

THE HISTORY OF COMPUTER APPLICATION IN PHARMACY

Computer science and technology is deeply utilized in pharmacy field
everywhere like in pharmacy colleges, pharmaceutical industries,
research centers, hospital pharmacy and many more. Computer
significantly reduces the time, expenditure, and manpower required
for any kind of work. Development of various software makes it trouble
free to handle huge data. In short, computers are playing critical role
in pharmacy field, without computers pharmacy research will be long
lasting and expensive.
But now a day’s use of computers in pharmacy field reduced the
manpower and time. Computers are almost related to every corner of
pharmacy field. These are utilized in the drug design technique, retail
pharmacy shop, clinical research centers, crude drug identification,
drug storage and business management, hospital and clinical
pharmacy, in pharmacy colleges.
WHAT ARE THE APPLICATION OF COMPUTER IN PHARMACY
Right now computers and pharmacy go hand in hand. Drug and
patient database management; order entry systems; drug information;
billing; purchasing; automated dispensing units; and on and ON! If
you have a background in both health care and computers/computer
science you will be a hot product.
Today we can exchange health information and provide services
across geographic, time and social boundaries.

COMPUTER AND MEDICAL EDUCATION

Computers have revolutionized the way education is handled in the
today’s world.. In medical education, computers are particularly useful
because there is such a need for learning and presenting large
amounts of data, getting and comparing accurate study and test
results, and effectively monitoring patients.

HEALTH INFORMATICS
 Health care informatics or medical informatics is the intersection
of information science, computer science, and health care. It deals
with the resources, devices, and methods required to optimize the
acquisition (gaining), storage, retrieval, and use of information in
health and biomedicine.
Health informatics tools include not only computers but
also clinical guidelines, formal medical terminologies, and information
and communication systems. It is applied to the areas of nursing,
clinical care, dentistry, pharmacy, public health and (bio)medical
research.
COMPUTER AIDED DESIGN OF DRUGS
A further refinement of new drug design and production was provided
by the process of computer-aided design (CAD). With the availability of
powerful computers and sophisticated graphics software, it is possible
for the medicinal chemist to design new molecules and evaluate their
effectiveness.

PRESENTATION
The field of medicine often relies on complex definitions of conditions
and procedural techniques. If you are an educator, use the computer
to show your medical students PowerPoint presentations that simplify
the large amounts of text often needed in medical science. Stick to the
basics in the visual presentations. You also may use computers to
present video data of medical policies or procedures, or for slide shows
of diseases or traumas and their treatments.

PAPERS
If you are doing a medical research study, you can use the computer
to write your findings, format a paper for publication, find relevant
studies on the Internet or print posters for medical conferences. If you
use the Internet, stick to reputable information sources such as
electronic versions of medical journals. Being able to write these kinds
of papers is crucial in establishing your credibility as a medical
professional because they show that you have an understanding of
one or more medical topics and are able to conduct research and
present information.

SIMULATION
 Because medicine involves hands-on work, medical students need to
practice procedures before they do the procedure for real on a patient.
Use computer programs that simulate surgery and other procedures to
meet this need.

TESTING AND SELF EVALUATION

Use computers to take tests on medical subjects or to quiz yourself on
medical data. The advantage of this is that you can get immediate
feedback and do not need to depend on your instructor to review
information or to find out how well you have learned. If you use this
method, keep your tests or reviews short and use them often rather
than having huge long tests and reviews. You are more likely to retain
information if you use it frequently, and in medicine, you'll also be
called on to pull many medical facts daily from memory.

INFORMATION SYSTEM IN THE PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRIES

Pharmaceutical companies are responsible for providing updated,
relevant information on the efficacy, safety and quality of drugs to
medical professionals and finally to patients. To fulfill this
responsibility, they developed a drug information database system to
manage various information generated during development of new
products and after launch of the products.
This system is incorporated into an on-line network
system, and can be directly accessed by thousands of people all over
the world.

DRUGS INFORMATION AND SERVICES

Pharmaceutical companies are responsible for providing updated,
relevant information on the efficacy, safety and quality of drugs to
medical professionals and finally to patients. To fulfill this
responsibility, they developed a drug information database system to
manage various information generated during development of new
products and after launch of the products.
This system is incorporated into an on-line network
system, and can be directly accessed by thousands of people all over
the world.

INFORMATION STORAGE
Computers can store massive amounts of data. Use a computer or
personal digital assistant to take and store notes on any patients you
may see as you go on supervised rounds. This makes it much easier to
find the medical information you need when discussing the patient
and reduces the physical amount of papers and texts you need to
carry with you. This is very important in medicine, since efficiency and
ease of referencing medical information impacts the speed and
accuracy of patient treatment.
THE AREAS COMPUTER IS APPLIED IN PHARMACY
Communication
Computers are used within pharmacies to facilitate communication.
From email to other Internet-based messaging systems, online
communication allows pharmacists and other pharmacy staff to keep
in contact both within their own organization and within the
professional community. Some pharmacy companies have their own
Intranet systems for internal communications over the Internet.
Prescription Processing
Prescription processing is invariably one of the main activities going
on within a pharmacy on a day-to-day basis, and computers are used
to make this process more reliable and efficient. Both the customer
service side of pharmacy operation and the dispensing aspect are
today carried out through the use of computing systems. Pharmacy
computers also handle customer service activities such as sales and
cash handling within the retail operation.
Information
Having access to the Web via pharmacy computers is something that
has enhanced the ability of pharmacists to carry out their duties to a
higher standard. As well as giving the pharmacy staff access to the
vast store of information that is available on the Internet, including
those on specialist pharmacy resources, the Internet connects
pharmacists to their peers on a global scale. Professional communities
for pharmacists operate on-line, creating an atmosphere that is
conducive to professional development.
Databases
Computer databases for information about medicines, and medical
treatment in general, are used within pharmacies. These database
systems allow pharmacy staff to find out information about any
potential conflicts or health-care problems in a prescribed treatment,
as well as information about the details of any particular medicine the
pharmacist needs to know more about. This information may include
ingredients and potential effects as well as research and scientific
data.
Error Prevention
Pharmacy computer systems can help to prevent errors in medication,
potentially saving lives and generally preserving the health of patients.
As well as checking medicines and combinations of medicines, these
systems can in some cases check on patient information. The
availability of such systems varies across the different geographical
areas, but in some cases pharmacy computers are able to check on
prescribed medicines with specific reference to a patient and their
overall health-care picture.

Retriever of Data’s using the computer system.

Computer is an electronic device consisting of various components like
key board, CPU (Central Processing Unit), VDU (Visual Display Unit or
Monitor), printer and mouse etc. Most activities follow the basic
principle of Input-Process-Output (I-P-0 cycle). This can be best
 illustrated by an example of registration in hospitals. A person who
wishes to see a senior doctor has to fill a request slip. This slip
contains the relevant data, i.e., name, age, sex, etc. The operator then
feeds this data from the request slip into the computer. The process in
this case includes examining the availability of senior doctor and
determining whether the data suits to the patient or not. As a result of
this process, some information is output. The output may be in the
form of a printed proforma. if the senior doctor is available or
otherwise a message may by the commuter turning down the request.
COMPUTER SOFTWARE USED IN PHARMACY
1. WinPharm:
2. Pioneer RX
3. HBS Pharmacy Software
4. Arteb Pharmacy Solution e.t.c

Standard pharmacy software features should include:

 User friendly input and recall of patient, drug and prescription
information
 HIPAA and regulatory compliance (including DEA reporting, FDA
required MedGuides)
 Full prescription management
 Complete third-party claims submissions including adjudication
(V5.1, etc)
 Failsafe features for safety and accuracy
 On-line reconciliations
 Drug-file updates
 Tailored labels
 A/R management
 Inventory management
 Electronic wholesaler ordering
 Bar code scanning
 Signature capture
 E Prescribing
 Auto Dr fax
 Complete and accurate drug interaction and other databases
 Interfaces for POS, IVR, Automatic Dispensing Systems,
reconciliation systems and other important third party products and
services
 And much more
Ultimately, the right software will allow you make better business
decisions and give you an edge in the market. A representative
financial model (see Business Case) will help you evaluate the
financial impact of pharmacy management software on your business.

Additional software features can include:

 Workflow management
 Hand held integration for deliveries
 Claim resubmission profit maximization programs
 Pill imaging
 POS integration
 And much more
Having the right software will allow you to deliver the highest level
patient care while maximizing your profits and allow you to spend
more time generating new business.
Advantages and Disadvantages
 Safety of Patients information
 Security of the computers
 Patients diagnoses
Also there are disadvantages
 Software error
 Insurance company could be offline at times
 Updates
Conclusion: Limited and inconclusive evidence about whether these
systems are effective and what system features are optimal may
explain the wide variation among systems in terms of what problems
are screened and may also explain clinicians' uncertainty about their
value. A comprehensive national research agenda for reducing medical
errors should include research on the effectiveness of computer-aided
PDUR.
A recently published Institute of Medicine report[1] identifies medical
errors as a leading cause of injury and death and calls for "a
comprehensive and strong response to this most urgent issue facing
the American people." Recommended steps include developing
procedures to assist pharmacists in detecting errors and encouraging
hospitals to use error reduction techniques. In the Harvard Medical
Practice Study,[2] researchers identified adverse drug events as the
single most common cause of error-related injury. While these reports
focus primarily on errors of commission, failure to cure, control, or
prevent a disease through underuse (i.e., errors of omission) of
medication is another cause of drug-related morbidity and mortality
that may be at least as common.[3-6]
A frequently recommended method for preventing adverse drug events
is computer-aided screening of prescriptions.[7] Pharmacists generally
screen, or perform prospective review, of a patient's medication
regimen during the prescription dispensing process to prevent drug-
related problems that, if uncorrected, might lead to adverse effects or
failure to achieve treatment goals. Prospective drug utilization review
(PDUR) became legally mandated for Medicaid patients following the
implementation of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990
(OBRA '90) in January 1993. Up until that time, this activity had been
voluntary on the part of the pharmacist.
In performing PDUR, most pharmacists are assisted by DUR software
applications that are resident on their pharmacies' computer systems
(i.e., in-store computer-aided PDUR). A pharmacy benefits manager or
claims processor may also use DUR software applications online at the
time of electronic claims adjudication (i.e., online computer-aided
PDUR). Both in-store and online systems issue an electronic alert
when a prescription claim violates a preestablished criterion for
appropriate drug use. These PDUR alerts typically indicate the type of
problem detected and whether an interacting or duplicative medication
was dispensed from the same pharmacy or a pharmacy different from
the one submitting the claim. Online systems offer a unique
advantage: They allow users to review a prescription against a profile
of all medications a patient has purchased from all the pharmacies
that have submitted prescription claims for that patient. In this article
we focus on computer-aided PDUR using in-store and online computer
systems. Electronic alerts that are primarily administrative in nature
(e.g., prior authorization alerts and same-day refill alerts) are not
considered here.

News reports of pharmacists failing to catch potentially significant

drug-drug interactions captured the interest of the United States
Pharmacopeial Convention (USP) and the American Pharmaceutical
Association (APhA). These organizations were concerned about the
media's failure to focus on the role computer-aided PDUR can play as
a potential solution and about reports that pharmacists were
frequently overriding PDUR alert messages.
USP and APhA convened a steering committee to oversee the
preparation of an advisory report summarizing the issues surrounding
computer-aided PDUR and making recommendations. The committee
solicited input from recognized experts from academic pharmacy, the
legal profession, third party payers, and system vendors with the
intent of compiling their observations and recommendations into a
single report. However, the committee found a lack of consensus
among these experts; in fact, opinions on specific issues diverged
widely, as Table 1 shows. In this article we propose that lack of
published evidence is the cause of much of this controversy and
recommend research approaches that could improve the evidence base
for computer-aided PDUR.
 Standards have been set for evaluating the effectiveness of clinical
preventive services.[8] These standards require a satisfactory level of
evidence before a health care provider recommends that a screening
test be included as part of a periodic health examination. Analogously,
the effectiveness of computer-aided PDUR systems should be
demonstrated convincingly before they are recommended as a primary
tool for preventing adverse medication outcomes.
Uncertainty as to whether a particular health care intervention
improves care is now widely recognized as a major reason for variation
among providers in rates of use of the intervention. [9,10]Therapeutic
decision making about whether to implement the health care
intervention takes place in the absence of clear, evidence-based
guidelines and recommendations. When considering the rate of
uncertainty about computer-aided PDUR, prescription insurance plan
managers make decisions about which, if any, system vendor to
contract with in the absence of evidence about which system
attributes yield maximum effectiveness. Furthermore, system vendors
make decisions about which criteria to include in a system and which
operational definitions and system algorithms to use in the absence of
evidence to support these decisions. Health care providers make
decisions about whether a particular alert signifies a real drug use
behavior that must be addressed.
References:
1. Indiana Professional Licensing Agency, Indiana Board ofPharmacy -
Pharmacy Technician Requirements and Application, on the Internet
at http://www.in.gov/pla/2898.htm.

2. National Center for O*NET Development, O*NET Online, Summary

Report for: 29-2052.00 – Pharmacy Technicians, on the Internet at
http://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/29-2052.00

3. http://baonsquarestech.blogspot.com/