Feedback loops in pharmacy workflow

Chicken or egg, what came first? In a feedback loop, it is impossible to tell. In its simplest form, a feedback loop is a circular pattern, that initiates with a change to the status quo (call it gas pedal). That change results in another change (call it brake), eventually causing a return to original state.

Low blood sugar, feel hungry, eat, rise in blood sugar, no more hunger.

Feel sleepy, fall asleep, obtain rest, wake up rested.

Parent cleans up, kids make a mess, parent cleans up.

There are feedback loops with positive and negative impacts happening all day long, whether you notice them or not. 

What if you could harness positive loops and blunt the negative ones?

In a previous article, I describe the value of being a “thinker” pharmacy manager type versus a “do-er”. The value of being a thinker comes by way of the positive feedback loop it brings. 

By focusing on people recruitment, development and succession planning, thinker-leaders yield more free time to focus on evaluation of weaknesses and strategizing how to strengthen them. These weaknesses often stems from suboptimal workflow on repetitive tasks. By having time to think (offered by a previous investment of hiring the right people), the pharmacy leader identifies patterns as bottlenecks and develops out-of-the-box solutions that unlock efficiency and safety. 

The end result is a more fluid workflow that brings many tangible downstream side-effects like overall job satisfaction, higher employee engagement and retention, better customer service and business growth.

With growth, comes a doubling-down on investing in more people, cycling a positive feedback loop of business success.