Posted on July 31st, 2008 by admin

Pharmacy is a profession in transition. Once upon a time, the community pharmacy was the home and work site of the owner-employer pharmacist, the sole proprietor responsible for ordering and dispensing medications and perhaps even dusting and stocking the shelves. He stood behind the counter ready with price and advice for every prescription you brought in.Nowadays corporate ownership of chain pharmacies is becoming more and more common. The hometown pharmacist is giving way to the employee or manager pharmacist, and you may not see the same face on Tuesdays that you see on Thursdays—and you may al not even care.

What’s the big deal about choosing a pharmacist? And what does it have to do with your health and pocketbook anyway, you ask, Just find a pharmacy that’s close and cheap, and there you are, right’ Sure, those are two valid considerations, but others are probably more important to your health and ultimately your mission, to get the most for your medical dollar. Most important are details such 11 as how willing and able the pharmacist is to help you with generic drugs and over-the-counter medications, and what the pharmacy’s policies are regarding generic substitutions, refills, and emergency prescriptions.

You see, more than just a pill counter, your pharmacist is the most readily accessible health care professional most of us have. And no appointment is needed. The pharmacist is a highly trained drug expert who probably knows more than your own physician about the relative benefits and risks of various drugs. Of the pharmacists surveyed by the journal Drug Topics and reported in its June 15, 1987 issue, around half said they found as many as two physician prescribing errors a week, and nearly a quarter of the pharmacists caught ten or more mistakes in the same interval.

With today’s medications more expensive, more complex, and in some cases more potent, and with drug prescribing on the increase (61 percent of office visits result in a prescription), you need to find a competent and communicative pharmacist—now more than ever.

You’re looking for a pharmacist willing to talk to you, to tell you when and how to take your medications, how frequently and for how long. You should expect straight answers when you ask about side effects, potential drug-food interactions, drug allergies, and nutrition and drug therapy, and more, because, after all, it’s a matter of health—and economics: about $2 billion a year is spent on drugs that treat the adverse effects of other drugs, according to Health Information Designs, Inc., of Arlington, Virginia. Clearly,  can save you money, not to mention your life in some cases.

Finally, remember that as convenient as it may be to skip around from pharmacy to pharmacy, it’s a good idea to limit yourself to one. That way you are more likely to find someone you can trust, someone who keeps an ongoing record of your medications and any problems, and someone who is more than a faceless person behind a counter.

Tags: appropriate drug use, choosing a pharmacist, find a pharmacy, generic drugs and over-the-counter medications, Saving on Drugs and Medications, your health and pocketbook