The Inevitable Evolution-How AI is reshaping the community pharmacist’s role for the future

First Published in America’s Pharmacist, November 2025
Written by Brad Crosslin and Aaron Cunningham

In the fast-paced world of health care, community pharmacies stand as pillars of their communities, providing not only medications but also personalized care and expert advice. For years, pharmacists and their teams have battled the pressures of margin compression and the relentless need for efficiency. This has led to an ongoing search for tools that can streamline operations without sacrificing the human touch that defines community pharmacy. Enter artificial intelligence (AI).

While the term “AI” might conjure images of complex robots or futuristic technology, its true effect on community pharmacy is much more practical and immediate. AI is not about replacing the pharmacist; it’s about giving them back their time. The core message is simple: AI is no longer a distant possibility. It’s an inevitable force that is already changing the landscape of pharmacy operations.

This article will explore how AI can serve as a powerful assistant, focusing on its ability to eliminate the repetitive, time-consuming tasks that consume valuable staff time. By understanding these applications, you can prepare your pharmacy to thrive in an AI-powered future.

AI’s fundamental role: The ultimate virtual assistant

AI’s most significant contribution to the pharmacy is its role as a true virtual assistant, freeing your team from repetition. This technology is designed to leverage real-time data and handle tasks that are redundant and time consuming. Think of all the routine tasks that staff perform daily: answering the phone, entering data, managing adjudications, and navigating a multitude of administrative challenges. These are the very tasks AI is an expert at handling.

When AI is implemented properly, it acts as an assistant that can perform these repetitive tasks with speed and accuracy, freeing up human staff to focus on more complex and unique patient needs. The result? A quieter, more focused pharmacy environment, with fewer interruptions and a more efficient workflow.

This is a game changer for day-to-day operations. Imagine a world where a patient calling about a refill can choose to handle it via a text message interaction, with the AI understanding the request and processing it in a minute or two, instead of a pharmacist spending 15 minutes trying to communicate with a patient who can’t speak on the phone. This is not a hypothetical scenario; it is a real-world example of how AI is already making pharmacies more efficient and accessible.

Beyond the basics: AI’s effect on workflow and communication

One of the most profound changes AI brings is the shift away from traditional, linear workflows. Instead of a rigid, step-by-step process, AI enables an approach based on a list of tasks.

Traditional pharmacy software often forces every prescription through the same linear workflow, whether it’s a new therapy or a daily refill. AI, by contrast, “remembers” standard procedures it has executed successfully, automating them in the background. Your team then sees only the exceptions: the prior authorizations that need a pharmacist’s signature, the unexpected drug‑interaction alerts, or the handful of complex claims that require a human touch. This quiet prioritization keeps the workflow flowing without constant manual triage.

Similarly, AI can shoulder the burden of claims submission (medical or prescription). Instead of manually entering patient and insurance information, a trained AI tool extracts data from your management system, verifies codes, and even flags missing modifiers before a claim goes out. The result is fewer denials, less back‑and‑forth, and a billing clerk who spends more time resolving complex cases and less time rekeying forms.

The human element: The pharmacist’s enduring role

One of the most common misconceptions is that AI will supplant pharmacists. AI’s ability to handle repetitive tasks is not a threat to the pharmacist’s job. It’s an opportunity! In fact, it reinforces the value of the pharmacist’s expertise. Clinical decision-making is not a repetitive task; every patient is different, and every decision is based on unique criteria. This is where the pharmacist’s critical thinking, empathy, and years of training become indispensable.

AI can serve as a supportive tool for clinical tasks, not a replacement. For example, AI can act as a safety net, analyzing a claim before submission and flagging a potential rejection based on patterns it has learned from thousands of other claims. It doesn’t replace the professional judgment you apply every day; it amplifies it. By letting AI handle the mundane, you and your pharmacists and technicians can spend more time on the interactions that deepen patient relationships, optimize clinical outcomes, and reinforce the personal touch that defines community pharmacy.

Getting started with AI: Choosing the right partner

Before you dive into AI solutions, take a moment to reflect on your pharmacy’s unique needs and capabilities. Not all AI solutions are created equal, and choosing the right partner is critical to success. When evaluating vendors, look for the following characteristics:

1. True AI-first design. Choose a solution built from the ground up with intelligence at its core, not bolted on as an afterthought or a sales gimmick.
2. Seamless integration. The AI solution should connect easily to your existing pharmacy management system (PMS) and other key systems, without requiring expensive custom coding. Integration with your systems enables real-time, data-driven interactions.
3. Data privacy, security and compliance. The solution must handle sensitive pharmacy and patient data responsibly. Ensure the vendor is fully SOC 2 compliant, uses industry‑standard encryption, and has clear data‑use policies. AI solutions are not HIPAA-covered entities like pharmacies are so you should have a HIPAA business associate agreement that spells out responsibilities for privacy and security of protected health information.
4. Transparency and control. You must be able to review questions that the AI was unable to answer and curate the responses.
5. Vendor support. Robust onboarding, ongoing training, and a responsive help desk can make or break your project’s success.
6. Proven ROI. Ask for case studies or references from other community pharmacies. Look for measurable outcomes such as time saved, error rates reduced, and improvements in patient engagement.

By asking these questions up front, you’ll avoid the common pitfall of implementing AI that doesn’t mesh with your workflow or expectations.

The road ahead: Embracing the inevitable

AI is not a magic bullet, nor is it a passing trend. It’s an inevitable evolution of the digital tools we already use. The pace of change in AI is exponential; what was impossible just two years ago is now a reality. We are still in the early stages of this technology, and the future possibilities are virtually limitless.

For community pharmacies, the catalyst is simple: more data and more patient expectations. Every e-prescription, insurance claim, and refill request becomes another piece of information that, collectively, can be processed by AI far faster than any person or team. Meanwhile, today’s patients expect quick, personalized interactions — whether they’re checking a refill status at midnight or asking about coverage in their own language.

Like the shift to electronic health records or the adoption of e-prescribing, AI will eventually become more common.  

Community pharmacies are cautioned, however, to work with experts and exercise diligence when implementing AI into their systems. AI cannot supplant human judgment and oversight. Importantly, pharmacies, not the third-party AI vendor or software, will be held responsible if the AI system fails to meet the legal and ethical obligations required of pharmacists.

Final Thought

By using AI properly, community pharmacies can reduce repetitive tasks, increase efficiency, and, most importantly, empower pharmacists and their staff to focus on what matters most: providing the high-quality, personal care that is the hallmark of community pharmacy. The future of pharmacy is not a choice between human and machine; it’s a partnership where AI handles the repetitive tasks, so pharmacists can focus on the patient.

Embrace AI as the capable assistant it is, and you’ll position your pharmacy not only to survive the next wave of technological change, but to thrive in it.

Explaining the “magic” behind the scenes: AI primer

For pharmacy owners, understanding the inner workings of artificial intelligence isn’t about becoming a developer; it’s about understanding why AI is so powerful and why it’s only going to get better.

AI refers to technologies that enable computers to perform tasks typically requiring human intelligence, such as reasoning, learning, and making decisions. It’s a foundational innovation that can significantly improve operational efficiency by automating workflows, reducing human error, and accelerating information processing.

Key components of AI include:

• Machine learning, which allows systems to learn from data to make predictions or categorize information.  
• Natural language processing, which enables machines to identify, interpret, and generate human language.  
• Computer vision, which gives machines the ability to “see” and interpret visual data.  
• Generative AI, which creates new content, such as text or images. 

For pharmacies, AI’s ability to reason, learn, and act directly translates into tangible value by automating repetitive tasks, quickly processing vast amounts of information, and making data-driven predictions. This leads to enhanced efficiency, improved accuracy, elevated patient safety, and a superior patient experience.

About the Authors

Brad Crosslin, Synerio Senior Vice President of Retail Pharmacy Products and Services, brings decades of pharmacy and technology expertise. Beginning his career as a pharmacy technician and rising to president of PDX, he’s known for visionary product leadership that always puts patients first.

Aaron Cunningham, Synerio’s Chief Architect, is a pharmacy technology leader and AI expert with deep expertise in designing and delivering scalable solutions for pharmacies.

About Synerio

Synerio harnesses AI and other advanced technologies to craft pharmacy solutions to drive pharmacy efficiency and exceptional patient experiences. Synerio uses AI to streamline both patient engagement and pharmacy operations.Always at the forefront of AI and other advanced technologies, Synerio crafts pharmacy solutions to drive pharmacy efficiency and exceptional patient experiences. With a legacy of pharmacy innovation, Synerio uses AI to streamline both patient engagement and pharmacy operations. Our solutions make it easy for patients and pharmacy teams to get the support they need anytime. From reducing complexity behind the counter to delivering faster, more personalized care, Synerio helps create a smarter, more efficient pharmacy experience with technology that feels effortlessly human.

Learn more at Synerio.com.