click to view image
As more people seek to actively manage their health, the traditional relationship between the pharmacist and the patient is changing. This study proposes new pharmacies based on a social model of interaction.
In the traditional shop-counter pharmacy, medicine and advice are dispensed in a clinical, professional and often impersonal environment. But as patient aspirations rise in line with a growth in alternative medicine and online diagnosis, a paradigm shift in how pharmacies work is underway. In particular, the relationship between the pharmacist and the patient is undergoing change, as health is increasingly viewed as being less about curing sickness and more about maintaining well-being. Personal autonomy in managing health is thus balanced against reliance on a medical authority figure.
Within this changing context, Lloydspharmacy, and its parent company Celesio, commissioned a study to re-examine the role of the pharmicist, understand more about the voice of the patient and envisage potential pharmacies based on a social model of interaction.
Research through drawing
To achieve its objective, the research adopted an imaginative user-led approach. The medium of drawing was used to encourage people to express their aspirations for their health and their responses to pharmacy through sketching. At the outset, four Saul Steinberg illustrations were used as ice-breakers to visualise different types of pharmacist-patient relationship. Six users, ranging in age, gender and health, were then asked to respond to a series of questions by drawing on a giant pad. The entire process was video-recorded, resulting in visual transcripts that could be analysed by the researcher. In a second round of user consultation, the patient group was then asked to comment on a series of provocative design proposals aimed at visualising expectations of what a future pharmacy could offer.
Five future pharmacies
Five potential pharmacy scenarios resulted from the project, each describing a new type of patient-pharmacist relationship. The 'Open Pharmacy' serves a local community of people who are not referred to as 'patients' or 'customers' but as 'members'. Each member recognises that their personal health forms a small but significant part of the community's health and they can interact with other members within a circle of care, sharing knowledge and ideas. This model bears the tagline 'Your Health, Our Health'.
The 'Life Pharmacy' - bearing the tagline 'Health is a Journey' - is for people concerned with their well-being. Dispensing medication is only a small part of its business. Contact with the pharmacy is sustained and ongoing rather than intermittent in response to illness. The 'Pro-Scribe Pharmacy' elevates the professional status of the pharmacist, who emerged in the research as under-valued. It is known for its no-nonsense advice and its name refers to 'Proscription' - a formal (but non-legal) agreement between the pharmacist and the patient that they will not undertake activities that will damage their health.
The 'Self-Health Pharmacy' ('Many Advisers. One Expert. You') considers the patient to be their own health expert, affording customers more autonomy and responding to the rise in self-help. Finally, 'Coffee + Pharmacy' is a coffee shop with an en-suite pharmacy. This represents a form of 'undercover healthcare' for people who have an aversion to the constant reminders that they are ill. The wait for their prescription can be enjoyed while reading the paper and sipping a latte.
