Arrow Senior Living Achieved a 50% Reduction in Order Management Time and Improved Pharmacy Collaboration

The Challenge

Arrow Senior Living, a large senior living management organization responsible for developing and managing senior living communities across multiple U.S. states, is committed to the highest quality of services for its residents across every domain of care.

Arrow saw an opportunity to improve its medication management workflows and communication with their partner pharmacy. The organization experienced delays around communication about orders that were waiting for clarification or additional details. “People didn’t go to nursing school to sit behind a computer and be on the phone several times a day with the pharmacy trying to solve issues with orders,” explains Derek Harris, Managing Director of Wellness at Arrow Senior Living.
They were looking for a solution to simplify and automate medication management processes, reducing the need to use multiple medication order workflows and cutting time spent calling their partner pharmacy. Arrow needed to find a tool that would help staff increase time spent focusing on other resident needs. “That’s what we’re trying to get back to. Let’s get everyone doing what they do best. Simplification and automation — that’s what’s going to get us there.”

The Solution

Arrow chose to implement PointClickCare Pharmacy Connect as a solution to inefficiencies in medication management and found significant benefits in how they approach this essential task. When considering Pharmacy Connect, Arrow recognized that it provides seamless integration with their preferred pharmacy, reduces multiple medication order workflows, and offers an easy-to-use, role-based workspace and user interface.

Pharmacy Connect enables wellness staff to easily track and confirm orders and provides medication-related notifications, including alerts for medication warnings. It also notifies the pharmacy when status changes occur, keeping records synchronized. This enabled Arrow wellness nurse teams to collaborate more easily with the pharmacy, reducing unnecessary steps and time away from direct resident care.

The Outcome

Arrow’s wellness nursing staff quickly found that they were saving significant amounts of time during their routine medication management tasks. These improvements in medication workflows also mean that senior living organizations are supported in safe and compliant medication management.

“We’re basically cutting out time on both sides, whether it’s the pharmacy or us — just the overall management of the [medication] order has become so much faster for us,” says Harris. He notes this amounts to a time savings of over 50% for his staff in relation to medication management. Additionally, the ability to integrate more easily with partner pharmacies and communicate about orders has meant a 40% reduction in medication errors due to delayed start times and lack of drug availability. With Pharmacy Connect, Harris shares, “Now there’s more capability to edit orders as well. I think that’s something that’s worth complimenting.”

Pharmacy Connect has helped Arrow’s wellness staff ensure that residents receive the correct and optimal medications for their needs at the right time, avoiding duplication or drug interactions, and keeping them safe, healthy, and happy.

Learn More

If you’re interested in implementing Pharmacy Connect to help your organization achieve results like those experienced by Arrow Senior Living, click here for more details.