Giant Food Pilots Prescription Pickup Kiosk
LANDOVER, Md. -- Ahold USA division Giant Food installed an automated refill prescription pickup kiosk at a Reston, Va. unit to make it easier for shoppers there to retrieve refills when it is convenient for them.
The program's centerpiece is the ScriptCenter, a high security kiosk that shoppers can access whenever the store is open, regardless of whether or not the pharmacy is operating. The unit is supplied by Asteres Inc.
"We believe the pilot in our Reston, Va., store will show that ScriptCenter gives us the ability to offer our customers a secure and convenient way to pick up refill prescriptions whenever the store is open, without the necessity of having to wait in line," said the chain's s.v.p., John Fegan. "In addition, the technology will enable our pharmacy staff to have more time to spend with customers who need consultation or additional help with their health care needs."
How it works: Once consumers complete one-time registration to use ScriptCenter, they order their refill prescriptions as they would normally, and the pharmacist refills the prescription as usual. However, instead of being placed behind the counter, each finished prescription is placed into a sealed, barcoded bag and loaded into ScriptCenter.
To retrieve his refill, the consumer enters his username and password, selects his prescriptions, swipes a payment card, and signs the electronic signature pad. The kiosk locates, verifies, and delivers the prescription into an electronic bin that opens for customer retrieval.
Giant Food operates 191 supermarkets in Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, and the District of Columbia, and employs more than 25,000 associates. Giant stores in Delaware operate under the Super G name. Included within the 191 stores are 162 full-service pharmacies.
The program's centerpiece is the ScriptCenter, a high security kiosk that shoppers can access whenever the store is open, regardless of whether or not the pharmacy is operating. The unit is supplied by Asteres Inc.
"We believe the pilot in our Reston, Va., store will show that ScriptCenter gives us the ability to offer our customers a secure and convenient way to pick up refill prescriptions whenever the store is open, without the necessity of having to wait in line," said the chain's s.v.p., John Fegan. "In addition, the technology will enable our pharmacy staff to have more time to spend with customers who need consultation or additional help with their health care needs."
How it works: Once consumers complete one-time registration to use ScriptCenter, they order their refill prescriptions as they would normally, and the pharmacist refills the prescription as usual. However, instead of being placed behind the counter, each finished prescription is placed into a sealed, barcoded bag and loaded into ScriptCenter.
To retrieve his refill, the consumer enters his username and password, selects his prescriptions, swipes a payment card, and signs the electronic signature pad. The kiosk locates, verifies, and delivers the prescription into an electronic bin that opens for customer retrieval.
Giant Food operates 191 supermarkets in Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, and the District of Columbia, and employs more than 25,000 associates. Giant stores in Delaware operate under the Super G name. Included within the 191 stores are 162 full-service pharmacies.