Information and Resources

Does Your Pharmacy Measure Up?

Sept. 12, 2003 -- Bigger isn't always better. A new Consumer Reports survey shows that once-struggling "mom and pop" drugstores are now making a comeback against big chains as customers gravitate toward service with a more personal touch.

Independent pharmacies won top honors in the survey of more than 32,000 Consumer Reports readers who rated their experiences when shopping for prescription medication at 31 chain, supermarket, and independent pharmacies and mass-merchant pharmacies (such as Target and Wal-Mart) nationwide.

Consumers rated pharmacies on three criteria:

• Service: How courteous and helpful were the pharmacists?
• Speed: Were medications ready for pickup when promised? How long did you have to wait for service at the counter, and was the pharmacy ever out of the prescription medications during the preceding year?
• Information: How was the information pharmacists provided about prescription medications?

Independent pharmacies had the best showings for service, speed, and also got high marks for providing good drug information to customers. Because prescription medication accounts for the majority of their sales, a focus on prescription medication means more personal attention. The independent pharmacies offered other benefits as well such as disease-management education, in-store health screening, home delivery of prescription drugs, and compounding (customizing medications for patients with special needs). Overall, independent pharmacies secured a score of 88% customer satisfaction.

Supermarket chains and mass-market pharmacies also did well against drugstore giants. The top contenders for overall satisfaction among supermarket chains were:

• Publix (85%)
• Wegmans and Winn-Dixie (82%)
• Vons and Kroger (80%)

For mass merchants:

• ShopKo and Target (83%)
• Kmart, Costco, and Meijer (81%)
• Fred Meyer (77%)

The top three for drugstore chains were:

• Medicine Shoppe (87%)
• Snyder's Drug (79%)
• Osco Drug (77%)

Overall, Rite Aid had the lowest showing at 69%. Wal-Mart finished last in the mass merchants category, coming in at 75%.

Some general trends that showed up in the survey: For independent stores, the bottom line is service, service, and service. The report shows that because the focus of these stores is on prescriptions, people get more personal attention.

The overall opinion about chain pharmacies: Convenient but crowded. These stores have 24-hour access, web sites, drive-through windows, and accept an array of insurance plans. But because there are so many bells and whistles, they attract many customers -- which translates to wait time.

Supermarket pharmacies were popular because of their one-stop-shop experience. The downside: More prescriptions to fill, and with so many people in the store, private conversations with your pharmacist come at a premium.

You can find all of the results in the October issue of Consumer Reports.