Extending the Role of a Pharmacist

Prescription drugs are a huge problem right now in the United States, many people do not realize that these drugs are coming out of their pharmacies into hands of people who sell these drugs to addicts and the uneducated. In Drugs, Inc. DEA agent Tom Lenox argues, “Prescription pills are one of the most significant drug problem we are facing right now not just in California but nation wide in the Untied States” (2010-2014). The reason that prescription painkillers are so deadly and such a big problem is they are highly addictive as Drug, Inc. states, “more people succumb to painkillers then heroin and methamphetamine combined.” (2010-2014) Pharmacists tend to sell pills to support their own drug habits. Many pharmacists, even though they make

The twenty-first century has seen pharmaceutical companies grow in unprecedented size and strength. Due to the unprecedented growth the larger pharmaceutical companies have gained leverage and power in the prescription drug industry, but they lack innovation to market and they seek ways to help the business continue to increase its profits. The pharmaceutical industry was once ethically sound and was a valuable player in the development of human health. However, overtime with the lack of innovation pharmaceutical companies are becoming an unethical market that exploits patients, doctors and anyone else it can to increase its profitability. With eyes only on profitability this can create a hazard for patients because there

As we see the further progression of the opioid epidemic within the United States, pharmacists become the frontlines to recognizing and providing care for these patients. It is however difficult to provide care for a patient when even the professionals within the medical community have an associated stigma attached to the use of these drugs. Patients who have a need for these painkillers recognize this stigma, and by doing so decide to avoid consulting their doctors and do not seek the care which they need. They do this to avoid the discriminatory treatment they receive both within and on the outside of the healthcare system, and to avoid the legal repercussions associated with the misuse and abuse of these products1. It is therefore the pharmacists' job to avoid the stigmatization of these people and respect those who use these treatments for legitimate medical purposes.

Most people are familiar with prescription medications; almost everyone has taken them at one point or another during their lifetime. Not all prescription drugs are addicting, but a large number of them are. Prescription drug abuse is a disease that has become a major problem in the United States, which affects over six-million Americans. Prescription drug abuse not only affects the individual, but can additionally have far-reaching consequences that affect family, personal health, employment, communities and society as a whole. Research has shown that at least 10% of people prescribed an addictive medication will become dependent on the medicine. Due to prescription drug abuse, states are beginning to monitor doctors who prescribe certain medications, more closely, which may scare some physicians away from prescribing helpful medications to people who truly need them.

I think this particular ethical dilemma encompasses three of the APhA Code of Ethics principles. The principles involved are as follows: “pharmacist promotes the good of every patient in a caring, compassionate, and confidential manner”, second “pharmacist acts with honesty and

My experience at CVS/Pharmacy is a thorough illustration of the integration of ethics, technology and management. Since the time of Hippocrates, ethics have been at the forefront of importance in the healthcare field with pharmaceuticals bearing no exception. As members of the healthcare team, pharmacy staff have an ethical responsibility to ensure the safety of their patients; thus there is a need to make sure drug and other health information regarding the patient is accurate. Providing the wrong drug or drug dosage and issues of drug-drug interactions are just some of the very serious concerns associated with pharmaceuticals. Another ethical issue that is often related to the healthcare industry is privacy.

In 2004, the New England Journal of Medicine published an article that dealt with a very controversial topic; Julie Cantor, a lawyer and expert on bioethics, and Ken Baum, physician and lawyer, talk over conflicts that arise when professionals (pharmacists) are dealing with emergency contraception and birth-control options. Is providing emergency contraception and birth-control considered providing standard care? Should the personal morals of pharmacists allow them to reject prescriptions for emergency contraception or birth-control?

American citizens envision a society which all people have access to high quality and affordably priced prescription medications. For many consumers, access to prescription medications is out of their reach. There is no denying prescription medications importance; they are known for being associated with saving people’s lives, maintaining people’s health, and improving the lifestyles for consumers.

In the article “Young, Assured, and Playing Pharmacist to Friends,” it describes different types of people in different situations from different places all participating in the new craze of self-medicating. All of the people described were young and confident in their ability to know what prescription pills were best suited for their problem at that time. These self-medicating young people trade pills in exchange for other pills, and often times take them without a doctor’s permission, and justified it with the use of the Internet. This pattern of pharmaceutical sharing reflects the larger medicalized culture of pursuing the better self by showing how and why the younger generation self medicates. In the article one woman even describes that she feels that she knows more about what she is talking about, pertaining to what prescription drugs she should take, than a doctor does.

One of the most important roles of a pharmacist is the ability to intervene, assess, recommend and implement a therapy for a patient. As part of the Applications of Pharmacy Course we have the opportunity to apply all these roles utilizing different methods and tools of intervention, such as the Screening, Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT). Each one of these tools can be oriented to be general and therefore can be utilize in any type of circumstance, whereas other types of tools are focused on specific topics and therefore are intended to be use on specific settings, like for example SBIRT is utilize to assess substance abuse. SBIRT consists of 2 different screening tools; one, which focuses on drug abuse, and the second

The Pharmaceutical industry has been in the spotlight for decades due to the fact that they have a reputation for being unethical in its marketing strategies. In The Washington Post Shannon Brownlee (2008) states, “We try never to forget that medicine is for the people. It is not for the profits. The profits follow.” This honorable statement is completely lost in today’s world of pharmaceutical marketing tactics. These tactics are often deceptive and biased. Big Pharma consistently forgets their moral purpose and focuses primarily on the almighty dollar. Big Pharma is working on restoring their reputation by reforming their ethical code of conduct.

As a future Howard graduate, my main goal after completion of my undergraduate Pharmacy Degree, is to continue to push past boundaries, jump over obstacles and fight through hardships to shape my community for the better. I would continue to work endless on advancing my education by finishing my graduate degree at Howard. I will strive to not only accomplish the best grades, but to understand the material like never before. I would also make sure I am actively involved in the Howard University community, just like I was in my school community. After I complete my graduate degree of Pharmacy I plan to start off in a hospital setting. As I learned in my experience of the prestigious Summer Pharmacy Program (The BESt Program), diversity is key

Today in the 21st century the roles of pharmacist have expanded tremendously. Before pharmacist had the role of solely dispensing drugs. Pharmacists were limited to only being regulatory or clinical pharmacist. Back then they were called medical purveyors who were much like today’s regulatory pharmacist and hospital pharmacist who are similar to hospital pharmacist. Now pharmacists carry many roles in healthcare. Pharmacist can play roles in public health, community, health systems, state, and federal government.

Prior to the eleventh century, distribution of medicine was implemented by doctors. Since then, pharmacists have gained greater credibility and consequently established the responsibility of dispensing medication. This advancement proceeded in nations where doctors are paid consultation fees, yet in countries where a physician’s livelihood depends on selling medication, the original practice continued. This is an important issue to discuss as many lives are affected by preventable medical errors globally every year. A study showed that annually in the United States of America approximately 3.8 million inpatients and 3.3 million outpatients are affected by avoidable medication errors (Massachusetts Technology Collaborative and NEHI 2008). The purpose of this essay is to argue that only pharmacists, and not doctors, should be licensed to dispense and sell medicine.

The flow of the medical community is dependent on every person employed there. The harmony it creates does not only come from the doctors or nurses, but the janitors, surgeons, receptionists, and even the pharmacists. Each job is necessary in order for the hospitals to function properly; for instance, the doctors diagnose the patient with their illness, prescribe them medication to cure it, and send them to the pharmacist, who then gives them their medication and sends them home. However, some jobs are overlooked more than others and do not receive the proper credit, like the pharmacist. Pharmacists are recognized for dispensing and sorting drugs, but their jobs help educate patients over their prescription and uphold the