Will Pharmacy Accept or Reject Innovation with ChatGPT?

With the launch of ChatGPT, AI tech has become the latest hot topic. With the growth of digital health and virtual care, the pharmacy industry is ripe for innovation. But the pharmacy profession is often focused on “damage control," and they miss out on the potential benefits of using artificial intelligence. It is time for pharmacists to change their perspective and start asking, "What can we do with AI?"

Recently, I came across some interesting conversations on Twitter by Jeff Cain and Timothy Aungst about the potential impact of AI on society, healthcare, and academia. I find these conversations turn to the consequences like plagiarism or academic dishonesty, or the fear-mongering “job elimination” mantras. This highlights a major problem in pharmacy: an overemphasis on maintaining the status quo and not exploring innovation possibilities.

Pharmacy is Behind the Times

Companies like Uber, Airbnb, Purple, and Hello Fresh disrupted their respective industries by adopting digitalization and commodification of services in the 2000s and early 2010s. Despite the slow adoption rate, the pharmacy is finally waking up to the potential of new technologies, as taken healthcare ten years to catch up to the market with companies like Ro or PillPack which launched only a few years ago. With the advent of these new players, we can expect to see a major shift in how healthcare is delivered in the future.

Want some examples of what AI could do for pharmacy? Ask ChatGPT:

Don’t Try Controlling AI or How People Use It

Hundreds of years ago, academic institutions were at the forefront of progressive thought and ideas, pushing the boundaries of human knowledge and understanding. Today, I think that happens to an extent, but I also believe academia has become a societal institution aimed at controlling the learning process and over-emphasizing assessment as the goal of education (just-pass-the-test mentality) vs. exploring knowledge.?

As a pharmacy professor, I would stop everything in my courses and ask my students to work on AI projects and learn everything they can about chatbots and AI in about a month. Then, I would ask them to create a new application, source code, or process implementations for AI within our industry. How much more would a student learn by using technology to innovate vs. memorizing more information they may or (more likely) may not use?

Do you remember the first time you asked yourself, “Why do I need to know this?” For me, it was 4th grade, “Why do I need to know the capital of Montana? I live in Michigan.” (sorry, Montanans)?

The market doesn’t value useless knowledge. Every pharmacist knows Medicinal Chemistry courses are near worthless because a typical pharmacist job never uses the knowledge. Healthcare practitioners already rely on databases to provide information for us like Lexicom or Medscape. Pharmacists don't need to be walking databases; they need to be clinical decision makers.?

Instead of focusing on discussions about academic integrity, plagiarism, and students cheating using chatbots to pass tests, we should focus on AI's potential to revolutionize our profession.

AI Innovation is Inevitable.

There's this old story about Roman Emperor Tiberius, who was presented aluminum by a goldsmith. The Emporer executed the goldsmith out of fear of gold devaluing since aluminum was could be found easier than gold and had more potential uses than gold. Despite the Emperor’s hubris, nearly 2,000 years later, aluminum was rediscovered and innovated. No matter how much people, with or without power, deny new technology, innovation always wins out over time.?

AI has the potential to replace unnecessary work.

Just 200 years ago, 90% of Americans were farmers, and today that number is less than 1%. Did those farmers just disappear? No, they moved on to more creative, scientific, and advanced work.?

AI can eliminate jobs and tasks in pharmacies, but it also can create new professions, jobs, and opportunities for pharmacists. Innovation naysayers claim that AI will replace people, and some think it won’t. Let me ask a question:?

• Are pharmacists compounding raw materials into consumable medicines??

Not anymore. Innovation transformed the pharmacy profession to specialize. Innovation, AI in this context, won’t replace a human. It replaces unnecessary work and, in turn, creates new jobs and opportunities.

Moving Pharmacy into a Happier Future with AI

Do I think AI will change pharmacy today? No. It’ll take another 5 to 15 years. But At The Happy PharmD, we envision a future where pharmacists do work they love TODAY (not years from now), which for many means patient-focused clinical work instead of the traditional distribution model of pharmacy.?

If you want to innovate your career and get a job you love, it’s time to talk with us. If you have questions or want to chat about getting into a job you love, reach out to my team or me. We would love to learn more about your career and help you find clarity and a successful job you love.?

P.S.

If it wasn’t obvious, I've been using Chat GTP… a lot. I’m using it in my business and personal life, in fact I used it to help me with this blog. If that interests you and me in sharing how I'm using it, I'd be happy to share. Please comment below.?