NUMARK
Viva las Pharmacy
WAynE hArrISon, rEgIonAl SAlES MAnAgEr AT nUMArK, DrAWS PArAllElS BETWEEn ThE PhArMACy lAnDSCAPE AnD hIS rECEnT TrIP To lAS VEgAS, nEVADA.
I
had the pleasure of taking a holiday in las Vegas recently. While walking down the strip, I heard some lyrics
bursting out of a tannoy. It was the song ‘Viva las Vegas’ coming from a themed restaurant which pays homage to Vegas’s number one son, Elvis Presley. The lyrics said ‘got a whole lot of money that's ready to burn, so get those stakes up higher’.
Those lyrics stuck with me. Clearly, Elvis was singing about the city in the middle of the nevada desert and this may seem farfetched, but I couldn’t help but draw similarities to the healthcare sector.
on the strip, there are flashing lights, welcoming entrances, free admission and endless signs to entice you in to the countless restaurants, bars and shops all competing for your custom. When you set foot through the doors you get a warm welcome, similar to when you enter a pharmacy.
That said, in reality it can’t all be flashing lights and endless giveaways. What happens when the money runs out, the lights get turned off, the shutters come down, and that pot of
48 - PhArMACy In foCUS
gold at the end of the rainbow doesn’t exist?
As many industry experts are suggesting, healthcare - whether it be pharmacy, the nhS or emergency services - cannot continue in the direction it is heading for much longer and survive. The current situation in England is a prime
looking back to Vegas, it’s clear how much it has changed over the past 20 years, similar to the pharmacy industry. famous landmarks like Stardust, Dunes and riviera have all been and gone. Why is that? What was the common link between them? It was their limited offering and the fact they didn’t move with the times.
In VEgAS, IT’S no longEr VIABlE To only offEr A CASIno, AS PEoPlE Won’T CoME ThroUgh
ThE Door. IS PhArMACy AT ThE SAME CroSSroADS?
example of this; funding is being slashed, while pharmacies are expected to step up and do more to relieve the pressure on the nhS. over in northern Ireland however the landscape is much different, with the Minister of health calling for a rethink in how we deliver our health and social care service.
Equally, new hotels and casinos have popped up and thrived, offering whole complexes with shows, shopping centres and world class sports in one place. In Vegas, it’s no longer viable to only offer a casino, as people won’t come through the door. Is pharmacy at the same crossroads? The remuneration model is changing,
as is funding for dispensing, so we need to adapt to survive.
you get the sense that times will continue to be tough, not just in 2017, but for the foreseeable future. The money pot can’t be shared evenly among everyone and only some people will win. We have gPs, A&E, hospitals, nurses, dentists and pharmacists all hoping their number comes up and they can continue to be a part of the game, but knowing deep down that the house always wins.
Chatting to a friend, he asked a throwaway question: ‘If pharmacy was a casino game, which one would it be?’
I answered: ‘I’m not sure, I would like to think it could be a premium game, one which everyone benefits from, gets value out of and gets adequate amounts of money to ensure it continues to thrive.’ All that said, there’s a lot of work to be done if we are to meet Michelle o’neill’s ambitious health and Wellbeing 2026: Delivering Together commitment.
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