62% Kiwis Get Advice From Pharmacist

10 October 2011

62% Kiwis Get Advice From Pharmacist

Nearly two-thirds of kiwis are choosing to bypass their GP for medical advice in favour of their local pharmacist, according to the findings of a survey of pharmacies.

The survey by Canstar Blue revealed that 62% of kiwis are choosing to seek medical advice from their local pharmacist, rather than visiting the family doctor. Dunedin residents were the most likely to head to the pharmacy, closely followed by Wellingtonians. Women were more likely to seek advice at 65%, than men at 58%. Gen X is most in favour of accessing free advice with 65% heading to the local pharmacy.

Derek Bonnar CANSTAR CANNEX – New Zealand National Manager said the survey also found that Amcal had the most satisfied pharmacy customers. Pharmacies included in the ratings were: Amcal, Care Chemist, Unichem, Life Pharmacy and Radius Pharmacy.

“Amcal received five stars in five of the six categories rated, including: overall satisfaction, pricing, service, range, availability of pharmacist and advice provided. It shared some of these five star ratings with Unichem, which received top billing for service, range and availability of pharmacist, while Care Chemist received five stars for both pricing and service.

“Our results also indicated that kiwis are pretty reliant on their prescription medications. Thirty two percent of those surveyed buy and/or refill their prescription medicines more than 12 times a year. Baby Boomers were the biggest consumers with 38% refilling their prescription medications at least monthly. Men are also slightly more likely (12%) than women (10%) to experience an adverse reaction to prescription medication.

“Buying pharmacy products online also seems to be a growing trend with 11% of kiwis surveyed, saying they buy a portion of their products online to save money. Men are four times as likely as women to head online for a pharmacy bargain.

Amongst those surveyed the most common gripes about pharmacies include:
• The long wait for prescriptions, particularly when there is no seating for the sick and elderly
• Store layout – narrow aisles and inadequate signage
• Customer service including inappropriate upselling
• Price of items in the pharmacy which can often be found cheaper elsewhere.

Canstar Blue commissions Colmar Brunton Australia to survey 2,500 New Zealand consumers every few months to measure their satisfaction across a range of products and services. The outcomes reported are the results from pharmacy customers within the survey group. To qualify, the customer has to have purchased from the pharmacy within the last 12 months.

Canstar Blue is the new division of financial research and ratings company, CANSTAR CANNEX which has been operating in New Zealand for nearly a decade.

Canstar Blue provides New Zealanders with the latest customer satisfaction ratings on products and services free of charge via the website www.canstarblueco.nz.

“Consumers will undoubtedly feel more confident about a purchase if hundreds of other Kiwis rate it highly,” said Derek.

To view the full results of the Canstar Blue survey go to: www.canstarblue.co.nz

ENDS