Adam James
If you or your staff have gotten tired of counting pills by hand, you might be looking into purchasing an automated pill counter to help with that task. Obviously, cost is probably the most important factor in determining whether purchasing an automatic counter makes sense for you. How much do pill counters cost? Here is what you can expect to pay if you are in the market for a counter-top pill counting machine:
GSE Eyecon® – $7,500.00+
Kirby Lester KL1 – $4,700.00+
Not much to choose from – and quite expensive, you might say. However, time is money, and time spent counting pills by hand is a waste of money. Below illustrates the cost of counting by hand in relationship to using an Rx-4 Automatic Tablet & Capsule Counter (the least expensive model available).
PHARMACY TECHNICIAN ($15.87/hour)*
| Counting Method | Avg. Time to Count 30 Pills | Avg. Rx Filled/Day | Avg. Labor Cost/Rx | Avg. DAILY Labor Cost to Count Pills | Avg. ANNUAL Labor Cost to Count Pills |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| By Hand | 15 seconds | 194 | $0.07 | $13.58 | $3,395.00 |
| Rx-4 | 6 seconds | 194 | $0.03 | $5.82 | $1,455.00 |
PHARMACY TECHNICIAN TOTAL ANNUAL SAVINGS: $1,940.00
HEAD PHARMACIST – ($62.09/hour) *
| Counting Method | Avg. Time to Count 30 Pills | Avg. Rx Filled/Day | Avg. Labor Cost/Rx | Avg. DAILY Labor Cost to Count Pills | Avg. ANNUAL Labor Cost to Count Pills |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| By Hand | 15 seconds | 194 | $0.26 | $50.44 | $12,610.00 |
| Rx-4 | 6 seconds | 194 | $0.10 | $19.40 | $4,850.00 |
HEAD PHARMACIST TOTAL YEARLY SAVINGS: $7,760.00
*Above figures from 2017 U.S. News & World Report, “Best Jobs Rankings”
As you can see, regardless of which product you choose, using an automatic counter will improve your efficiency and decrease counting costs, giving your staff more time to concentrate on patient care. Furthermore, the above table does not take into account counting errors which may be costing your practice even more money especially with the high cost of drugs these days. An automatic counter will typically pay for itself within 1-3 years.
Happy Counting!
