St. Vincent de Paul pharmacy (SVdP), located in Dallas Texas, is an independent nonprofit pharmacy with one goal in mind: to improve the health of the community by providing free access to life-saving medication to uninsured Texans. Their mission is to ensure patients don’t have to choose between groceries and medication; but even more, they’re passionate about serving their neighbors in need with dignity and respect.
St. Vincent de Paul nurtures numerous partnerships to help meet patients where they are. From partnering with the local community center to provide wellness goodie bags filled with OTCs to the homeless and refugees, to partnering with over 80 clinics to provide healthcare access to the most vulnerable patients in the Texas community, SVdP is committed to making a difference in the lives of their patients.
“The driving force for us in considering automation was the need to expand production efficiency in a way that still allows for us to provide care to our neighbors in need” Irula said.
St. Vincent de Paul pharmacy opened its doors in 2018 and, like many pharmacies, experienced extreme growth in 2020 as the pandemic drove more and more patients to their local pharmacy, where pharmacists filled the role of trusted healthcare provider.
With such rapid growth, plus the difficulty of finding pharmacy technicians, Carlos Irula, pharmacist in charge at St. Vincent de Paul, knew he had to pivot in a way that would accommodate the increase in patients while maintaining the level of care that makes SVdP such a special place.
“The driving force for us in considering automation was the need to expand production efficiency in a way that still allows for us to provide care to our neighbors in need” Irula said.
SVdP was selected for a grant by the Communities Foundation of Texas who provided funding for the Parata™ Max™ 2 vial filling robot that they recently installed. The Max™ 2 labels, counts, dispenses, and sorts medications, allowing SVdP to provide free prescriptions to more uninsured Texans who need life-saving medicine. Partnering with Parata was an easy choice – Irula had worked with the technology before – and in less than a month they had a record-breaking week, dispensing over 3,000 prescriptions with the help of their new Parata™ Max™ 2!
“The Parata™ Max™ 2 robot will allow us to triple our production, helping us to fill prescriptions for thousands of patients,” Irula said.
With almost six million Texans living without health insurance, SVdP plays a very special role in supporting the community on their path to a healthier life. And by automating their vial filling, the SVdP team can extend their reach to serve more neighbors in need.