Interview

Ganzenhoef is a large pharmacy in Bijlmermeer, an Amsterdam district containing around 92,000 residents. Chronic diseases such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease are relatively common here. According to pharmacist Aniek Joosen, the collaboration within the OCTA Pharmacy Group ensures that their pharmaceutical care has become a lot more resilient and futureproof.

Aniek thinks that one of the biggest challenges is the staffing problem.

"There is a lot of competition and everyone is looking for good employees. This is a challenge across the country, and especially in a city like Amsterdam, I have noticed that there are few pharmacy assistants available. So vacancies remain unfilled for quite a long time."

"If another pharmacy within the group is short-staffed, we can very easily support them remotely. We can take over prescription processing so that they can deploy enough staff at the counter to help their patients. It doesn't solve the staff shortage, but it does take away some of the pressure and worry."

Another noticeable benefit is the centralised purchasing policy.

"There are regular risks of shortages for certain medicines. Just last year, there was a big shortage of medication for patients with asthma and COPD. Previously, each pharmacy would have to find out for themselves if those medicines were still available anywhere. Nowadays, this is handled by the central purchasing organisation. As a result, the impact of the shortage was minor and we were able to stay focussed on what we do best: patient care."