The Druggist Pharmacy

California’s retail pharmacy industry is known for its stringent inventory reconciliation requirements, often turning compliance into a time-consuming challenge. For Nihar Mandavia, owner of The Druggist in Laguna Niguel, navigating these audits had become a persistent burden.

Determined to streamline operations and regain peace of mind, Nihar turned to C2 Keep, a fully integrated controlled substances inventory management and compliance solution. Since implementing the platform, he and his team have taken back control of their workflows, allowing them to focus more on what matters most: their patients.

Before adopting C2 Keep, Nihar and his team relied on Excel to manually track their daily controlled substance activities. As the pharmacy’s operations grew, however, it became increasingly clear that this outdated method was more of a liability than a solution. Frequent issues such as incorrect data entry, missing information, and the inability to track variations of the same drug created unnecessary frustration. Reflecting on the inefficiencies, Nihar recalls, “It was just extra time that we didn’t need to waste or spend on managing it.”

Beyond the inconvenience, Excel’s limitations posed significant risks. A recent power failure led to data corruption, forcing Nihar and his team to reconcile the previous six days’ worth of lost records. Security was another major concern. Having already experienced a burglary, Nihar knew he couldn’t afford to be unprepared for another incident.

In California, pharmacists must complete CII inventory audits every 90 days. For Nihar, he chose to do a CII audit every month, stating that he “looked at the task of doing it every 3 months as too daunting.” Once every month on a Sunday, Nihar would head into the pharmacy and spend 7 hours reconciling his controlled substances. The process was both mentally and physically exhausting, and after years of this draining routine, he knew his current system wasn’t sustainable. It was time for a better solution.

Nihar first discovered C2 Keep during its early development stage. After a demo with founder and CEO Roland Achenjang, he was immediately impressed. What stood out most was the platform’s ability to automate Rx number inputs and generate professional, organized reports with remarkable speed and accuracy.

Recognizing the potential to eliminate human error and streamline his workflow, Nihar became an early adopter of C2 Keep. As he put it, “I was trying to remove the human element and make it more automated, and C2 Keep had what I was looking for.”

In less than two weeks, Nihar and his team were fully onboarded with C2 Keep, which seamlessly integrates with their pharmacy management system and wholesalers. Almost immediately, they noticed a transformation in their controlled substance workflows as everything ran more smoothly, and the once tedious process became effortless.

Beyond the operational improvements, Nihar felt a newfound sense of relief knowing he had a reliable support system in place. “The support is great! Anytime I email or text Roland, I get an answer pretty quickly,” he shares. Overall, Nihar and his team found C2 Keep to be very self-explanatory and were amazed at how an intuitive solution made such a profound impact on their daily operations.

The biggest transformation Nihar experienced with C2 Keep is the dramatic reduction in time spent on 90-day CII audits. Instead of dedicating seven hours every month to manual reconciliation, he now completes the process in a fraction of that time. “Now I do my CII reconciliations on a Saturday every three months, and it takes me no more than 30-35 minutes,” Nihar shares. When you do the math, that adds up to an incredible 82 hours saved per year. Nihar also enjoys storing all of his reports both in a binder and in C2 Keep, eliminating the worry of losing critical records or making costly mistakes.

Gaining complete visibility into his controlled substance inventory has been a game-changer for Nihar and his staff. When they relied on Excel, errors and discrepancies were a constant challenge. But with C2 Keep’s automated data entry, those issues are now rare, and when they do occur, they are easy to spot and correct right away.

This newfound accuracy gives the team confidence, especially when handling unexpected events like burglaries or power failures. When asked about C2 Keep’s inventory management capabilities, Nihar explains, “Having C2 Keep as a perpetual inventory and reconciliation system makes sense. It’s easy to use, and you never have to worry about anything going missing or disappearing.”

According to Nihar, the greatest benefit of C2 Keep is the peace of mind it provides. “There’s peace of mind knowing everything is accurate, and if any report needs to be generated, I can do it very quickly,” he shares. He no longer has to second-guess his records or spend hours reconciling discrepancies. With full visibility into his inventory’s history and seamless compliance with California’s strict regulations, Nihar knows he is always in control. C2 Keep not only met his expectations, but it far exceeded them!