Boots is the UK’s first community pharmacy to deliver prescription medicines by drone.
The retailer was shipping drugs from Thorney Island, near Portsmouth, to the Isle of Wight.
It said using the technology accelerated delivery times while being more environmentally friendly compared to traditional transportation to the island, which involves a ferry and road vehicle.
Boots is the UK’s first community pharmacy to sell prescription medicines by #drone after a test flight earlier this month. The drone took off from Portsmouth and landed on the Isle of Wight. Read more here: https://t.co/2N9SxcaTAW#TechAtBoots @Apianaero pic.twitter.com/AJIkyfZ49R
— Boots UK News (@BootsUKNews) July 27, 2022
Boots said the first drone flew from the British Army’s Baker Barracks on Thorney Island and arrived at St Mary’s Hospital in Newport on the Isle of Wight on July 4.
The drugs were then collected and transported to Boots pharmacies across the island.
Earlier this month, the NHS announced it plans to use drones to ship chemotherapy drugs to the island in the English Channel as part of a pilot project, cutting transport time from four hours to 30 minutes.
It is hoped that the use of drone technology will one day enable doctors to have medicines and medical equipment delivered anywhere in the country on the same day.
NHS cancer patients will be the first in the world to benefit from chemotherapy delivered by drones.
NHS Chief Executive @AmandaPritchard explains how this latest innovation will reduce costs and CO2 emissions and treat patients as quickly as possible. https://t.co/UH5wsMgjwu pic.twitter.com/niHVeohwm0
— NHS England (@NHSEngland) July 7, 2022
Boots said it is now assessing the feasibility of using drones for deliveries.
It partners with medical transport company Apian to facilitate the shipments.
Rich Corbridge, chief information officer at Boots, said: “Drones have enormous potential in the delivery of medicines and it is incredibly exciting to be the first community pharmacy in the UK to transport them in this way.
“An island location like the Isle of Wight seemed like a sensible place to start a trial of drones, and their value for the delivery of medicines to more remote locations is very clear.
“In this trial, we will look at how much time we can save, as well as how we can include drones in our drug supply chain to create economic efficiencies as well.
“We now want to prepare for the wider use of this technology in the future.”
Max Coppin, chief operating officer at Apian, said: “Not only can drones deliver medicine to hospitals, but we are especially excited about our partnership with Boots as it demonstrates that drones can also help bring healthcare closer to communities.
“While they are faster and more reliable than land transport, they bring additional environmental benefits and provide a more sustainable solution for delivery.”