Online pharmacy Pharmacy2U, which is backed by the Business Growth Fund, has hailed a dramatic boost in customer numbers after joining forces with Chemist Direct one year ago.
The Leeds-based firm, the largest online pharmacy serving NHS patients, has today reported a 350 per cent increase in patients since the merger.
The company’s technology-driven repeat prescription service, which uses machine learning robots to improve the speed and accuracy of its delivery, dispensed a record 200,000 items to patients last month alone.
“Since merging we have invested heavily in our technological infrastructure and our state-of-the-art dispensing hub is already capable of distributing up to one million prescription items a month so there is still lots of room to grow,” Pharmacy2U chief executive Mark Livingstone said.
“Technology has transformed industries from retail and entertainment to travel and leisure and it is now making a significant, and much-needed, mark on healthcare.
“We are on a mission to help modernise healthcare and improve patient outcome in partnership with the NHS by managing repeat prescriptions from request to delivery, which relieves both the time and stress put on GPs, represents better value to the NHS and improves patient medicine adherence.”
Pharmacy2u, founded by pharmacist Daniel Lee in 1999, also offers clinical advice and assistance with medication management from pharmacists.
The company announced in May this year that it had received a £7 million investment from the Business Growth Fund (BGF) and other shareholders to drive growth.
The cash injection came just 10 months after it secured a £10m growth capital investment from the BGF when it merged with Chemist.co.uk.