Dealing with numbers and figures are inevitable for every business in trade especially in pharmacy. At the end of the day, the bottom line figure is what that matters and determines the continuity/survival of a business. Everyone knows they need to improve their bottom line and see an increasing trend from year to year, but how do you do it?
What to do if you have to get a valuation done. A pharmacy owner at some stage in their life will be required to get a valuation undertaken of your business. Typically this will be needed for the bank, either as part of the lending requirements every three years or for refinancing. Also for when you need to buy/sell or for partner equity swaps. Whatever the reason it is a very important process and it is vital you know what to do to achieve the best result.
Another APP has come and gone, and once again the themes of innovation, community health, change and professional services ruled the conference. They were the key issues for all Pharmacy of the Year contenders who were very inspirational. This week I am going to discuss a couple of concepts that have stuck out in our minds. The Federal Minister for Health Greg Hunt spoke of early access, interventions and preventative health outcomes without going to the hospital. Let’s just think about this concept for a little while, it is nothing new I’m sure. But in essence the pharmacy’s role is to screen patients for a range of ailments, then when identified pharmacists can refer patients to the GP. So instead of GP’s and pharmacies at war with each other, they can actual work really well together for the community’s health, and ease the pressure on hospitals. Patients having greater access to pharmacies and being screened more may help prevent patients from going straight to the hospital. They could be treated at the pharmacy and/or GP. This is a better outcome for everyone.
I wish I knew then what I know now…….does this statement sounds familiar? I know I have thought this quite a few times; recently it was about the topic of purpose. One of the biggest drivers on how I run Peak Strategies comes from having a clear purpose. The purpose comes from the answer to the question of “Why are you doing this?” Many of us start a business with set goals in mind, I certainly did. However, those goals sometimes change as you go through the motions. One of the many mistakes I made is that I didn’t truly understand the importance of having a strong purpose. I mean a REAL purpose; making money is not a true purpose.
The Blame Game
It is a really interesting phase of life that pharmacy is going through. There is a huge amount of nervousness in the market at the moment and a lot of discussion about the future of the industry.
What surprises me the most is the different reactions? There are some who feel so helpless; I am concerned for their mental health. There is without doubt significant pain felt by some, who simply cannot see any light at the end of the tunnel. They are seeing their pharmacies go backwards year after year, with rents increasingly unaffordable. There is clear distress.
