PHARMACY DIRECT, CURASANA AND ACTIVO HEALTH |
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Pharmacy Direct is a patient-centred business, with a strategic focus on making healthcare accessible to all.
OVERVIEW
Pharmacy Direct is the retail arm of AfroCentric's pharmaceutical operations. These include Curasana, a medicines wholesaler; and Activo Health, a drug importer and rights-holder for the South African market, in which AfroCentric has a 26% shareholding.
Pharmacy Direct is a premier courier pharmacy in South Africa, supplying chronic medication to patients nationally and internationally, including patients in remote rural areas in South Africa.
Medicines' accessibility is often the single biggest factor in a patient's compliance with and response to treatment. This is particularly true in rural areas, where 75% of Pharmacy Direct's patients reside, and where the nearest pharmacy may be out of reach.
Medical aid schemes recognise the value that a courier pharmacy adds, both from a patient perspective, where convenient accessibility improves adherence to treatment regimes, and a funder perspective, in terms of cost savings and zero fraud. Pharmacy Direct is currently a designated or preferred service provider to most medical aid schemes in the private market.
Pharmacy Direct is also a service provider to the National Department of Health ("DOH") in the distribution of medication to patients on the Central Chronic Medication Dispensing and Distribution ("CCMDD") programme.
This internationally funded project aims to:
- improve the patient's experience, access to chronic medicines and service delivery;
- develop a business model for private sector involvement in the provision for NHI implementation; and
- pilot the project for NHI implementation.
Pharmacy Direct delivers medication to seven provinces: Gauteng, Limpopo, North West, Free State, Mpumalanga, Eastern Cape and Northern Cape.
PERFORMANCE SUMMARY
Pharmacy Direct has expanded its patient base to more than 500 000 (2016: 220 000) prescriptions per month through organic growth and new contracts. This exponential growth is attributed to:
- exceptional customer care – meeting or exceeding client expectations in terms of service delivery and our culture of customer-centricity;
- cost savings to both funders and patients due to preferential pricing and generic conversions – medication costs are effectively managed through formulary compliance to agreed reference pricing;
- being able to deliver parcels anywhere in South Africa, making healthcare accessible to even the most remote patients – to date no patient has been denied a delivery due to an inaccessible address;
- zero fraud due to luxury and other auxiliary items not stocked; and
- compliance due to the monthly, automated dispensing and 99.9% on-time delivery of medication, in addition to collectively managing adherence of patients in partnership with Medscheme's managed care, which results in stability of chronic patients, reducing hospital admissions and thereby reducing the cost of healthcare.
| Central Chronic Medication Dispensing and Distribution ("CCMDD") |
Pharmacy Direct is a strategic partner to government through its contract with the DOH's CCMDD programme in seven provinces. Pharmacy Direct expanded its contract with the DOH for dispensing and distributing chronic medication by taking over Limpopo and North West from Dis-Chem as part of our contract. |
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| DSP contract with Medshield Medical Scheme | In January 2017, Pharmacy Direct was appointed as designated service provider to Medshield patients on the HIV programme |
STRATEGY
Pharmacy Direct is a patient-centred business with a strategic focus on making healthcare accessible to all. Accessibility directly links to affordability and convenience. Pharmacy Direct operationalises this commitment by ensuring value to both patients and funders through service excellence in the due care of patients and cost savings through our extensive service offering.
The following strategic objectives reflect this strategy:
| AFROCENTRIC STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES |
MEDSCHEME’S ALIGNMENT TO THESE | ||
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Enhance shareholder value | As the primary provider of chronic medication in the value chain, we are a sustainable business, and we remain confident in our ability to deliver. | |
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Maximise growth opportunities | We complete the value proposition to AfroCentric clients by offering an integrated solution that includes cost-effective chronic medication and lowers the overall cost of healthcare. |
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Improve efficiencies through cost consciousness | We are lowering the cost of medicine through an operationally efficient model that ensures that processes are designed to create cost-effective outcomes through high volumes. |
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Promote transformation | Pharmacy Direct is proud to be a Level 1 B-BBEE contributor, and is registered as a learning institution that enrols learners on the pharmacist assistant training programme biannually. The programme has 75 registered learners. |
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Diversify revenue sources |
Pharmacy Direct is responsible for 10% of Group revenue and continuously seeks opportunities to generate more. |
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Deliver exceptional client service |
Our customer-centric culture and strong adherence to our Service Level Agreements have been pivotal factors in our ability to retain our clients and grow our client base. |
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Reduce the cost of healthcare | Pharmacy Direct's preferential dispensing fees and generic conversion rate generate savings for our funders. Savings to members are also affected as chronic medicine benefits last longer and a wallet-free approach is being pursued through conversions. |
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Uplift our people | Pharmacy Direct has a philosophy of growing existing employees into Pharmacy Direct's future leaders. |
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OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES
Pharmacy Direct has been in the forefront of a private partnership with NHI – it has the contract to dispense and deliver medicines to public sector patients in seven provinces.
Flexibility in pricing strategies allows Pharmacy Direct to attract business through our sustained levels of customer service and compliance management to patients. The company's patient-centred ethos means that value is added through appropriate pricing and a personalised approach to service delivery.
Pharmacy Direct depends on service providers such as the Post Office and long-distance haulage companies to adhere to distribution schedules. Disruption in these industries hampers the Company's effectiveness. The business has engaged and partnered with a number of trusted suppliers such as Fedex to reduce the risk of catastrophic interruption to operations. The Post Office, which delivered 25% of Pharmacy Direct's monthly parcels, now delivers 4%.
PHARMACY VALUE CHAIN
Value chain optimisation – Pharmaceuticals
OUTLOOK
We are focused on capitalising on value chain optimisation within the Group and collaborating with other partners in the Group to pursue efficiencies and best practice.
Pharmacy Direct believes in its ability to drive increasing value in the support of the growing expectations and requirements of both patients and funders.
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Visit the Pharmacy Direct website, http://www.pharmacydirect.co.za/ |
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Read about Curasana and Activo Health on AfroCentric’s website, http://www.afrocentric.za.com/bus-act-direct.php |