Issue #23

Welcome back to this week's edition of The Weekly Fill! We're bringing you the latest pharmacy trends with some fun updates about life at ShiftRx.

The office has been on work mode all week — with a guest appearance from Minerva (AK’s cat). Productivity spiked 🆙 Conicidence? I think not.

The Weekly Fill is your go-to for pharmacists, pharmacy techs, owners, operators, managers, you name it. If you’re in pharmacy, this newsletter is for you. Share it with 10 pharmacy friends or risk five years of back ordered meds (scary isn’t it) 😇

💊 The Big Fill this Week: Walgreens in Talks to Go Private

What's happening?

Walgreens is reportedly considering a take-private deal, which has sent its stocks soaring. Private equity firm CVC Capital Partners is rumored to be in discussions to acquire the pharmacy giant, a move that could reshape the industry.

Quick Does:

• Stock spike: Walgreens shares jumped 8% on the news, signaling investors are optimistic about a potential restructuring.

• Why go private? The company has been struggling with declining retail sales and increased competition. Going private could give it the flexibility to pivot without quarterly earnings pressures.

• Potential changes ahead: If the deal goes through, expect operational shifts — mainly more focus on healthcare services rather than traditional retail.

What this means for you:

If Walgreens goes private, independent pharmacies and competitors may need to adapt. Keep an eye on their next move, especially if they increase clinical services.

Want to learn more? Check out the full story here.

Pharmacy Trends

Trump Threatens Big Pharma with Tariffs Over Manufacturing

Former President Donald Trump is putting pressure on pharmaceutical companies to bring manufacturing back to the US, threatening tariffs if they don’t comply.

Quick Doses:

• Poor shift? Trump has promised to push for reshoring, arguing that too much of the US drug supply chain depends on foreign manufacturing.

• Tariff talk: He’s specifically targeting companies that manufacture essential medications abroad, aiming to reduce reliance on overseas production.

• Industry pushback: Pharma execs argue that reshoring could increase drug costs and disrupt supply chains short term.

Why it matters:

If tariffs are imposed, expect a potential increase in price on imported medications, delayed drug availability, and a reshaping of the industry. Pharmacies should prepare for possible supply chain disruptions and keep patients informed about any pricing or availability changes.

Want to learn more? Check out the full story here.

ShiftRx Announcement

We’ve moved into full-time roles, in addition to the PRN marketplace, to help you build out a reliable float pool. We have a careers hub featuring a job board, so if you’re a pharmacist or tech looking for your next career move—this is a must to check out. Get started here: https://www.shiftrx.io/pharmacy-professionals.

And if you’re managing pharmacy operations: post your open roles on our job board and get direct access to only pharmacists and technicians instead of spending time on Indeed or LinkedIn, sifting through tons of resumes. Get started building your pharmacy dream team here: https://www.shiftrx.io/healthcare-facilities.

🗞 Quick Scripts: Other Industry News

• Research vs. Reality: Clinical trials tell one story but real-world data fills in the gaps. Understanding how HIV treatments perform outside controlled settings can help healthcare professionals make better decisions and improve patient outcomes.

• RSV Vaccine Hesitancy: A new study dives into the factors influencing RSV vaccine acceptance (AKA age, trust in healthcare, and past vaccination history). Understanding these patterns can help better immunization rates.

• Pfizer’s GenAI Health Chatbot: Pfizer’s latest AI-powered health assistant is raising eyebrows… will it revolutionize patient information or introduce privacy risks?

🌟Pharma Spotlight

Each week, we highlight pharmacy professionals and industry leaders who are making a real impact. This is our way of celebrating the work and dedication of professionals who drive pharmacy forward.

Kathy Pawlicki is Vice President, Business Development and Strategy at ASHP. This position is responsible for organization-wide business development and strategy efforts with a focus on cross-organizational collaboration within ASHP business units to support our member hospitals/health systems and colleges of pharmacy.

Throughout her career, Kathy has served in various pharmacy leadership positions in small, medium, and large hospitals, and championed improved medication management by advancing pharmacist and technician roles. She values continual advocacy for regulatory issues surrounding pharmacy practice through leadership in professional associations. Previous service to the profession includes Vice Chair and board member for the Michigan Board of Pharmacy, president of regional and state societies for health-system pharmacy in Michigan, and 2019–2020 president for ASHP.

Reflecting on your career journey, what is one piece of advice you received that has had a lasting impact on you?

A leader in another health care profession once told me that a wise mentor of his described a successful leader as one who answered a request with “yes, if…..” and unsuccessful leaders are those that always answer a request with “no because…..”. This approach, lead with “yes if” and not “no because”, had a lasting impact with me. Whether it be responding to a request for my team to accomplish a specific project or new initiative, or responding to an opportunity for me personally; this advice has served me well. “Yes, if….” sets a positive approach and tone in how best to accomplish a new responsibility, project, or challenge. Without this approach throughout my career, I would have walked away from some rewarding opportunities for my team. It also helped me realize, as opportunities presented themselves for my own career growth, I could successfully take on this new responsibility with confidence.

With your experience in integrating pharmaceutical services across multiple hospitals, what are the main lessons you’ve learned about reaching operational efficiency in complex health systems?

Operational efficiency can be viewed by some negatively. Too often operational efficiency conjures thoughts of reducing resources or cutting staff. During my career at a large academic hospital, I had the opportunity to lead a multi-department approach to create efficiencies for team members to spend more time with patients. What I learned through this approach is to look at current activities that are either inefficient and/or not effective. Not surprisingly, as technology and processes have evolved, there can be inefficiencies in normal daily work. It also became obvious that small efficiencies (saving a minute or 2 on a task) can add up to much larger efficiencies (hours saved) when incremental savings across multiple tasks are found. Later in my practice career, I was a Chief Pharmacist for a multi-hospital health system. It is important to recognize and acknowledge that not every pharmacy in a health system functions the same. Differing technology, staff expertise, and culture all play a role. Establishing system-wide pharmacy goals and strategy provides a solid framework to each business unit (pharmacy), how each pharmacy efficiently and effectively achieves the goals could differ. Additionally, recognizing that each organization has its own strengths and leveraging those positive attributes across the organization’s pharmacies is important. Some aspects of pharmacy in a complex multihospital health system are best and most efficiently accomplished centrally, while others are best accomplished at the local hospital pharmacy. Making sure all business units (pharmacies) are aligned to the same established goals is important to achieving strong results across the organization.

What has been the most rewarding or challenging aspect of your leadership journey?

Certainly, navigating the ever changing regulatory and financial landscape is viewed by many as one of the most challenging aspects of a leadership journey for those practicing in health care. Throughout my career, I have found that to be the case. However, my journey has been filled with many more rewarding experiences than I would have ever imagined and certainly these overshadow any of the challenges I’ve had to navigate. Reflecting back on my leadership journey and all the rewards it has offered; the overarching theme is community. Making connections with other pharmacy and non-pharmacy professionals, building support for each other, and working with the same goal of providing exceptional medication care for our patients; has built a community of individuals I trust and value. Many of whom I consider a friend, a mentor, or confidant. Someone who I can lean on when I need advice or whom helps me celebrate successes.

That’s it for today’s fill!

Stay tuned for next week’s issue. If you enjoyed this, please share it with your pharmacy friends. Until then, keep filling those scripts 🫡

Doses and mimosas, ShiftRx team

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