Storage system for pharmacy

Abstract

A storage system for a pharmacy that has a frame containing a frame with a plurality of storage carriers detachably suspended therefrom. The carriers are sized to receive filled prescription orders and the like and include individual identifiers that facilitate locating the carriers at a specific location on the frame. Preferably, the storage system includes a tracking system that detects, monitors, and displays to a worker the location of the storage carrier containing a particular customer's prescription order, thereby providing easy retrieval of the customer's prescription order.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method of manufacturing a storage system, comprising:
 providing a computer system;   assembling a storage device in communication with the computer system, wherein the storage device includes:   a frame;   a storage carrier detachably securable to a location on the frame, the storage carrier having a mounting portion for being detachably secured to the frame and a receptacle portion, the location being selected by a pharmacy worker from any available location within the frame by the pharmacy worker detachably securing the mounting portion to the location to define a worker-selected location;   a filled prescription order received manually within the receptacle portion of is the storage carrier, the filled prescription order associated with a customer of the pharmacy;   a computer-readable identification tag secured to the storage carrier, the tag having a unique tag identifier associated with the storage carrier;   electronically coupling a tag reader with the computer system, wherein the tag reader detects the computer-readable identification tag when the mounting portion of the storage carrier is positioned on the frame;   wherein the computer system automatically correlates the filled prescription order with the worker-selected location near which the storage carrier is manually placed.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the computer readable-identification tag is a radio-frequency identification tag and the tag reader is a radio-frequency identification reader. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the receptacle portion of the storage carrier is compressible. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the receptacle portion has a left side, a right side, and compressible front and rear sides extending between the left side and the right side. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 4 , wherein the front and rear sides are creased. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the mounting portion of the storage carrier includes a hook. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the computer system is capable of detecting when a storage container is removed from the worker-selected location to define a removed storage container and is capable of verifying that the filled prescription within the removed storage container is associated with the customer.