Should You Fear or Embrace
By George Van Antwerp, Managing Director, Deloitte Consulting, LLP George is a Managing
Director within the Life Sciences and Health
Care practice of Deloitte Consulting with over 20 years’ experience both in
industry and as a consultant. He leads the fi rm’s eff orts around the Future of
Pharmacy and Future of the Pharmacist and works with clients across the ecosystem. George has prior experience in industry and at several start-ups.
”AI won’t FIx
everything, but it
can help.”
algorithms before distributing them through drones to patient’s homes with little to no human intervention. T e technology exists to make this future state happen…although I believe most patients want and need more than this. T e other side of the coin is that AI is
T
going to make our lives better and easier. In this future state, we have advanced clinical strategies which include traditional medications, digital therapeutics, implantable devices, 3-D printed polypills, and other innovations like CRISPR. Our pharmacy systems are integrated with the prescriber’s systems allowing for electronic prior authorization (ePA). Our more repetitive tasks (e.g., counting pills, calling in for a PA) are automated allowing the pharmacist to operate as a central part of the care team where they are helping with drug selection, dosage, and titration. T ey are also
here’s always two sides of the coin. One says that Artifi cial Intelligence (AI) is coming for our jobs. One could imagine a high-volume fi ller with robots that pick and pack prescriptions that are run through clinical
providing depression screening and helping with nutrition or supplement choices that the AI algorithm helps them personalize to the individual. Today’s reality is a series of one-off AI led
innovations. Some of today’s AI feels very straightforward where it’s a data driven, machine learning approach to intelligent business rules (e.g., George typically responds to text messages on Saturday so send the reminder then). On the other side of the spectrum, it’s new generative AI (GenAI) that is able to develop content that can be used as part of a virtual reality treatment for someone with anxiety. It’s likely that this splintered model of innovation will continue for a few years until there’s a shakeout of companies and a reconfi guration of winning models around a few core platforms. Being in pharmacy today has many
challenges – lack of time and/or staff , regulatory constraints to practice at the top of the license, lack of access to data, and the current reimbursement model. AI won’t fi x everything, but it can help. Imagine using AI to help with… • Identifying and tracking inventory to avoid expired medications, minimize
12 Missouri PHARMACIST | Volume 98, Issue III | Fall 2024
stockouts, and fi nd the best acquisition price; • Integrating data, identifying your
highest risk patients, and developing a customized engagement strategy to improve their likelihood of being adherent and compliant; • Providing your patients with a
personalized digital advisor that helps them make informed decisions and leverage your pharmacy knowledge for complex decisions; and • Helping you to price your medications
to optimize reimbursement while also helping you to bill cognitive services under the medical benefi t when possible. Whatever role you play in the pharmacy
supply chain, the most likely scenario is that change is coming. Experimenting with AI technologies in your personal life and being curious about the possibilities and constraints is probably the best short-term action. Together, we can continue to evolve the practice of pharmacy across multiple settings leveraging AI and technology as an enabler.
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