As pharmacy deserts are becoming a growing concern for the Chicago area, I began to think about how we can supply these areas with pharmaceuticals without building a pharmacy. Pharmacy deserts are increasingly becoming a health concern to these communities in which pharmacies are closing down. These people who rely on more than 12 medications per day are now left without a pharmacy to refill their prescriptions. The ease of accessibility to these locations are cut off, changing an easy 10 min walk to an over 30 min commute to get to the nearest pharmacy.
Transportation barriers only make this matter worse. Now it is taking much longer for those to get to their pharmacies using various modes of transportation or on foot. This is leading patients to become inconsistent with their medications only decreasing the health of the community. This makes one think about what other ways we can get these medications to the people who need it in areas where transportation is poor.
Then idea of shipping prescriptions to your front door isn’t a new idea. There are many companies and apps that are already doing this such as CVS, PopRx, Walgreens, DeliverCareRx, and others. This idea combined with the amazon pick-up store could be of value to these areas with pharmacy deserts. These can be small locations where prescriptions can be delivered and are easily and safely accessible. As talk of Amazon breaking into the market has been going around there are many criticisms and positives about it, as it could be a step forward for healthcare. Amazon can bring price transparency to the table, again cutting costs in the industry.
The criticisms are losing the face-to-face connection between the patient and the pharmacist. Removing this human contact, can lead to improper use of the medications. It can lead to a disconnection between the patient and understanding the medicine they are receiving. These factors should be accounted for in understanding how to design for these new kind of spaces within our healthcare campus proposal.
Image: https://medium.com/@jajaliao/if-amazon-takes-over-prescription-drugs-whats-left-for-startups-172a715c6e9c
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