Pharmacy teams spend a significant amount of time managing prescriptions after they have been dispensed. Once a prescription has been prepared and checked, it still needs to be stored correctly, located when the patient arrives and recorded as collected. In a busy pharmacy, where hundreds of prescriptions may move through the dispensary each day, these tasks can create a considerable amount of additional work even when each individual process only takes a few minutes.
This is where scan-to-shelf technology can make a difference. Rather than relying entirely on traditional filing systems and staff manually searching for prescription bags, scan-to-shelf uses barcode technology to record where a prescription has been stored. This creates a digital record of its location and can, where the necessary systems are in place, support better communication with patients about the progress of their prescription. Community Pharmacy England has highlighted scan-to-shelf as part of the wider development of digital pharmacy workflows, while a recent case study from a Leeds pharmacy reported fewer prescription-status queries after introducing the technology.
What is scan-to-shelf?
At its simplest, scan-to-shelf is a way of digitally recording where a prescription has been stored once it has been dispensed and checked. Instead of placing a completed prescription on a shelf and relying on a member of the team to remember where it was put, the prescription barcode can be scanned as it is stored. The system then records its location, creating a digital link between the prescription and the shelf where it has been placed.
When the patient arrives to collect their medication, the team can use that information to identify where the prescription has been stored rather than searching through shelves or checking different storage areas manually. Community Pharmacy England describes scan-to-shelf as a barcode-based process that can update the pharmacy’s system and, where supported, provide prescription-status information through the NHS App.
The principle is relatively simple, but it can address a common source of wasted time in a busy pharmacy: knowing exactly where a prescription is and whether it is ready for collection.
Why can prescription collection create pressure for pharmacy teams?
Prescription collection may seem like a straightforward part of the dispensing process, but there are several points where it can create additional pressure for staff. A patient might arrive before a prescription has been completed, call to ask whether it is ready, or expect the team to locate their medication immediately. If completed prescriptions are stored across different shelves, fridges or controlled-drug storage areas, finding the correct item can become another interruption for the team.
Individually, these interactions may only take a few minutes, but they can add up significantly over the course of a working day. They also tend to occur at the busiest parts of the pharmacy, when staff may already be dealing with dispensing, clinical services, queries and other patient-facing responsibilities. Reducing the amount of time spent searching for prescriptions or answering routine status questions can therefore have a wider impact on how the dispensary operates.
A recent Community Pharmacy England case study provides a useful example. A pharmacy in Leeds introduced scan-to-shelf after identifying regular enquiries from patients asking whether their prescriptions were ready. Following the introduction of the technology, the pharmacy reported fewer prescription-status queries, better prescription traceability and more time for patient care and services.
How does scan-to-shelf work?
The exact process will depend on the pharmacy’s IT system and the technology being used, but the basic principle is straightforward. Once a prescription has been dispensed and checked, its barcode can be scanned when it is placed on a designated shelf. The system records the location, allowing that information to be accessed later when the prescription needs to be retrieved.
This can make the collection process more consistent, particularly when several members of the pharmacy team are working across different parts of the dispensary. The person retrieving a prescription does not necessarily need to be the same person who originally put it away, because the location has already been recorded digitally.
The information generated through the process can also support prescription tracking. Community Pharmacy England notes that accurate and timely prescription-status updates are important to the National Patient Prescription Tracking Service, allowing patients to receive more useful information about their prescription journey.
In this way, scan-to-shelf can become part of a wider connected workflow, linking dispensing, storage, prescription tracking and collection rather than treating each stage as a separate process. Systems such as Scriptlife take this further, using barcode tracking and digital records to manage the full prescription journey rather than just the shelving step.
How can scan-to-shelf improve the patient experience?
One of the potential benefits for patients is greater visibility over the progress of their prescription. Instead of contacting the pharmacy simply to ask whether their medicines are ready, digital prescription tracking can provide status information through supported services. Where the necessary integration is available, Community Pharmacy England explains that patients can receive medicine-readiness updates through the NHS App, while some pharmacies also use SMS or pharmacy-specific apps.
That can make the collection process more convenient while also reducing some of the uncertainty that can lead patients to phone or visit the pharmacy before their prescription is ready. The Leeds pharmacy featured by Community Pharmacy England reported that patients responded positively to clearer information about prescription readiness, while the pharmacy itself saw fewer “Is my prescription ready?” enquiries.
For pharmacy teams, this creates a useful combination of benefits. Patients can receive clearer information about their prescriptions, while staff can spend less time dealing with routine collection queries and more time on the other work taking place within the pharmacy.
What are the benefits for pharmacy teams?
The potential benefits of scan-to-shelf go beyond simply making an individual prescription easier to find. By recording where prescriptions have been stored, the process can improve traceability and reduce the risk of items being misplaced. Community Pharmacy England identifies better tracking, improved storage accuracy and fewer misplaced prescriptions among the potential benefits of the technology.
It can also create a more consistent process for the wider team. In a busy dispensary, relying on individual members of staff to remember where prescriptions have been placed can become increasingly difficult, particularly when different people are responsible for dispensing, checking and handing out medication. Having the location recorded digitally means the information is available to the wider team when it is needed.
This can help reduce unnecessary searching and make the prescription collection process more predictable. While scan-to-shelf is not designed to replace the work of the pharmacy team, it can remove some of the repetitive tasks surrounding that work.
Is scan-to-shelf the same as pharmacy automation?
Scan-to-shelf is an example of digital workflow automation, but it is quite different from the type of large-scale robotic system that people often associate with pharmacy automation. Rather than physically dispensing or moving medication, it uses barcode technology to improve the way prescriptions are tracked and stored.
This distinction is important because automation does not necessarily mean installing a dispensing robot. Different technologies can automate different parts of the pharmacy workflow, including prescription management, stock handling, dispensing, MDS, medication storage and prescription collection. In some pharmacies, a relatively straightforward digital change may address a specific workflow problem more effectively than a much larger automation project.
For that reason, pharmacies do not necessarily need to automate everything at once. Identifying a particular bottleneck and finding technology that addresses that problem can be a practical way to begin improving the wider workflow.
What should pharmacies consider before introducing scan-to-shelf?
The technology itself is only one part of the decision. For scan-to-shelf to work effectively, it needs to fit the pharmacy’s existing systems, physical layout and the way the team actually handles prescriptions.
Community Pharmacy England recommends checking whether the pharmacy’s EPS IT supplier supports scan-to-shelf functionality and ensuring that compatible barcode scanners and shelf labelling are available. It also recommends starting with a small pilot, training the team and gathering feedback before expanding the process across the pharmacy.
The physical layout is also worth considering. A scan-to-shelf process may work differently depending on the number and type of shelves available, how prescriptions are currently organised and whether refrigerated or controlled-drug items need to be incorporated into the workflow. The pharmacy team also needs to understand what problem the technology is intended to solve and how the new process will fit alongside existing responsibilities.
If prescription retrieval is the main issue, for example, the system needs to make finding prescriptions easier. If patient communication is creating the greatest pressure, integration with prescription tracking and notification services may be more important. The technology should support the workflow rather than forcing the pharmacy to build an unnecessarily complicated process around it.
Where does scan-to-shelf fit into the future of pharmacy technology?
Scan-to-shelf is one example of a wider move towards more connected pharmacy workflows — something we explored in more depth in our piece on the evolution of pharmacy automation. Rather than each stage of the prescription journey operating independently, digital systems are increasingly being used to connect dispensing, storage, tracking and collection.
The National Patient Prescription Tracking Service forms part of this development, with prescription-status information being made available through the NHS App and further developments around medicine-readiness notifications.
This creates an opportunity for pharmacies to look beyond individual pieces of technology and consider how different systems work together. A dispensing robot can improve the physical dispensing process, prescription management software can improve organisation and storage, while a prescription collection system like MedLocker can reduce pressure at the counter. Scan-to-shelf can help connect the point at which a prescription is completed with the point at which it is collected.
The right combination will depend on the pharmacy itself, its existing workflow and where the greatest sources of pressure are.
Finding the right place to start
Scan-to-shelf will not necessarily be the right solution for every pharmacy, but it demonstrates an important principle when considering pharmacy technology: relatively small workflow improvements can have a meaningful impact when the same process is repeated hundreds or thousands of times.
Before investing in any technology, it is worth looking at where the pharmacy team is losing time, where patients are experiencing unnecessary friction and which repetitive processes could be handled more efficiently. For some pharmacies, that could mean improving prescription tracking and collection. For others, the bigger opportunity may be dispensing automation, MDS, medication storage or prescription management.
At AcornRX Technologies, we believe pharmacy automation should start with understanding the pharmacy and its workflow rather than simply choosing a machine — the same principle behind our guide on where to start with pharmacy automation. By looking at the processes that create the most pressure, pharmacies can identify where technology could make the greatest practical difference and choose a solution that fits the way the pharmacy actually operates.
Want to explore where automation could fit into your pharmacy?
Get in touch with the AcornRX Technologies team to discuss your workflow and the solutions available.
