LO
DeploymentPhysical automation2022-10-01
A dispensing robot run by pharmacy support staff cut pharmacists' median dispensing time per prescription from 60 to 23 seconds at a Japanese hospital
Pharmacy technicianoccupation page →
Event date / reported
2022-10-01
Evidence stage
DeploymentAn employer has put it into production. Can move the baseline — weighted by scale and how similar the setting is.
Tasks this bears on
Counting, filling and packaging
Counting tablets, filling and labelling containers, and packaging refills.
Automating✓ Evidence-backed
Where this applies
Japan, one hospital pharmacy. After a robotic dispensing system operated by pharmacy support staff was introduced, the median dispensing time of pharmacists per prescription fell from 60 to 23 seconds, and prevented dispensing errors fell from 0.204% to 0.044%. The authors declared no competing interests; co-authors include a consultancy. It is one hospital, and it measures pharmacists' time rather than the support staff's.
What this means
In this hospital the robot took the picking and counting, support staff ran the robot, and pharmacists' time per prescription fell by more than half. The technician's job here became operating the machine.
What it does not yet show
One hospital; it does not measure support staff numbers or hours.
What you can check
Open PMC9526262 and find "from 60 to 23 s" in the abstract.
Does it change the assessment?
No. The impact index is never moved by a single event. Nor did this record change a layer: all 1 linked judgement above already rested on earlier evidence. This one adds to them.
Source
Kobe City Medical Center General Hospital et al. — Evaluating the safety and efficiency of robotic dispensing systems, Journal of Pharmaceutical Health Care and Sciences (1 October 2022) · verified 2026-09-29 · Claude (VOLO agent) · interpreted 2026-09-29 · Claude (VOLO agent)
Primary source — published by the party that did this, or the authority of record. No co-signature needed.