What is Pharmacy?

Accessible. Expanding. Busy. Medication Expertise. Problem Solving.

Pharmacy is a very diverse field that is constantly trying to address new problems successfully. Healthcare is ever evolving and this causes pharmacy to evolve right along with it. Pharmacists adjust their workflow activities and the tasks they focus on in order to better address the public problems that are presented to them. Pharmacists practice over a wide range of careers from poison control, to consultants in the hospital, to the management of PBMs, to your neighborhood community pharmacist, and many more. Pharmacists are problem solvers and that is the number one job that they hold.

This unique range of skills that pharmacists hold allows them to be utilized by the public as a medication expert. Our healthcare field is constantly trying to manufacture new therapies using medications so this keeps pharmacists on a continual treadmill of education. Constantly consuming data to learn about new therapies and stay up to date on old ones.

These unique traits put the field of pharmacy at a strong vantage point to help cover the gaps that are currently in our healthcare field. Many people out there still don’t have great access to healthcare. Pharmacists are one of the most accessible professionals available to provide healthcare. They are a phone call away and most pharmacies don’t require an appointment to see their pharmacist. What other setting do you know where you can walk in and get a vaccine and a consultation without an appointment and possibly be in and out in 20 minutes?

There are many success stories in pharmacy. This link below talks about some of them at this cool and unique website. Pharmacy Home Project does a great job showing off some of the great things that can happen in patient care with a pharmacist present. One of these stories speaks about how a chronic pain patient was having quite a lot of trouble with constipation. The patient, very innervated by their problem, did not know how to handle the situation. The pharmacist happened to dig a little deeper into the situation and found out that the patient was never prescribed or educated on the fact that the pain medications the patient was taking could cause constipation. The pharmacist then stepped in and advised that the patient begin taking a laxative and stool softener combination therapy. This solved the patient’s problem and allowed them to get back to life without having to worry about this unnerving problem. The pharmacist was able to provide the patient some education, advise, and lead them back to peace of mind. They possibly even prevented a physician visit or emergency room charge.

 http://www.pharmacyhomeproject.com/success

Pharmacy is truly many different things, but these are a few things that I believe pharmacy exemplifies. Pharmacy is poised to be a huge player to cover gaps in care for our public’s healthcare problems in the coming years. Creating transparency and educational points to show what pharmacists can do for people is huge, that way we can continue to provide great care for everyone. Pharmacists. Problem-solvers. Caregivers. Medication consultants.

 

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