Are You Frozen?
Jul 02, 2023
In pharmacy school, we learned a ton about the effects of the hormone epinephrine or adrenaline. It’s a super hormone that’s secreted during stressful, exciting, dangerous, or threatening situations causing an increase in blood circulation, breathing, and carbohydrate metabolism to prepare the muscles for action. When faced with fear, most people react in one of two ways- fight or flight.
There is a third way that the body can react to fear- to freeze!
To do absolutely nothing, just like a deer in the headlights of a car paralyzed by fear.
Are You Frozen?
How do you respond to fear as a business owner?
As a pharmacy owner, you might feel frozen when faced with all the uncertainty in the industry; increase in payroll, staffing challenges, drug costs, DIR fees and constant audits. Do you stand and fight, flee, or stand motionless when faced with all the decisions you need to make this year? Think about how you respond for a moment.
What are you doing right now to combat the major changes in our industry?
Fighting, fleeing, or freezing?
Don’t just do nothing, take action!
Now is the time to decide what you are going to do about the changes that you are facing in your business. Pharmacy is not the same as it was 5, 10, 20 years ago! It’s constantly evolving, and you must change with it or get out of it. Choosing to do nothing will not work, taking massive action will help you push forward to get unstuck.
You must first recognize that you are frozen.
Then, act right away to free yourself from your situation.
Ask for help and direction.
Have someone hold you accountable to your decision to become unfrozen.
Believe in yourself.
I see this far too frequently, pharmacy owners who know they need to do something, but don’t know where or how to start. They are tired of constantly hiring, being audited, and being in the red after a 12-hour day. There’re frozen.
You have clinical skills and customer relationships that are not found in other pharmacy channels – and they are things which your patients want. Believe in yourself, leap into action by offering new service lines that your community wants.
Consumers want more than just getting their medications from you. They want expanded clinical services, they want your knowledge, and they want the convenience of doing it all in one place – your pharmacy.
Here are a few new service lines you can build in 4 weeks or less that PBMs can’t touch, and you don’t need a CLIA waiver to offer- Bonus!
- Brain Health Testing
- Nutrient Depletion Testing
- Gut Health Testing
- Allergy and Asthma Testing
