One of Basingstoke's busiest pharmacies is currently undergoing a major refurbishment aimed at transforming its services and enhancing patient care.
Brighton Hill Pharmacy, located at Brighton Hill Parade, is introducing a state-of-the-art robot-controlled medicine dispensation system and expanding its consultation facilities as part of the refit.
The renovation, which will span eight weeks, is designed to accommodate the growing needs of patients.
Despite the extensive work, the independent pharmacy will remain open throughout the refurbishment to ensure continued service to the community.
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As part of the transformation, Brighton Hill Pharmacy will unveil three new consultation rooms.
These spaces will allow the pharmacy team to provide care for patients struggling to secure GP appointments.
The pharmacy will offer free consultations for NHS-funded services, including the Pharmacy First initiative, patients referred by GP surgeries, and blood pressure medication services for those aged 40 and over.
In addition to NHS services, the pharmacy will also offer private consultations for a range of specialised treatments, including travel vaccinations, micro ear wax removal, Vitamin B12 injections, and a weight loss clinic.
A key highlight of the renovation is the introduction of a robotic system that will assist with stock management, labelling, and medicine dispensation.
Lead pharmacist and owner Sagar Lungiwala assured customers that the robot is designed to support, not replace, the human staff.
"With the robot in, we will have more staff members to attend to customers," Mr Lungiwala said.
"The robot will help in labelling prescriptions. It will also pick up the medicine from the shelf, verify it, and bring it to the staff. This helps us to do double or triple verification."
The new system aims to free up staff time, allowing them to focus more on consultations rather than routine tasks of running between the till and the medicine shelves.
“My vision is to open more consultations so that customers get more time and attention,” he added.
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Since opening three years when it took over from Boots, Brighton Hill Pharmacy has expanded from a team of three to an eight under Mr Lungiwala's leadership.
The automation project is being spearheaded by Balal Anwar of Meditech, who spoke about the rapid changes in the pharmacy sector.
"Brighton Hill Pharmacy was the busiest pharmacy in the area during the Covid period," Mr Anwar said.
“You could see staff running ragged, packing medicines and doing consultations. But the robot we are building, which is going to be 3.5m by 9m size and is expected to be ready by end of October or the start of November, is going to massively help the staff.”
The robot will operate with the support of a software provided by Tariq Muhammad-led Titan PMR system.
The refurbishment work is being carried out by Healthcare Fitout, led by Rohit Raval, a specialist in healthcare facility refurbishments.
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