Pharmacy Rotations

Thank you Lord! I am very grateful to be able to successfully finish my third rotation at Walgreens pharmacy in Wellington, FL. My preceptor was Dr. Andrew Guvetis, a graduate from Nova Southern University and he has been working with Walgreens for a little over 2 years. During the first day, I noticed that this Walgreens was somewhat different from the others. It was designed like a wellness clinic where the pharmacist can spend some time during the day sitting on a desk right outside the pharmacy check-out counter and be accessible to answer any questions patients may have. It also had a big consultation room with comfy seating, a table including a sink and counter where a pharmacist can prepare immunizations or perform several screening tests. Walgreens offers health tests every day which help determine possible risks for heart disease or are looking for convenient ways to manage diabetes or high blood pressure. Some of the services offered include: cholesterol and blood pressure tests, body composition test and a comprehensive medication review. Test results are provided within minutes and it includes a pharmacist consultation as well.

Prior to walking in, my expectations for what I was about to partake in and experience were all over the place. I didn’t know whether to expect the absolute worst types of situations going on such as people being rushed into medical rooms or the most basic situations such as patients waiting for a strep throat test. I did expect to see a wide range of patients in terms of race, class, age, and gender. Contrary to the patients, I didn’t expect to see a wide range of race, class, age, and gender within the staff. I expected to see mostly female nurses, and male doctors, majority being Caucasian and middle age. I didn’t expect there to be that much security or any type of possible crime that could go on within a medical facility. I expected the waiting area and facility to be very large, large enough to accommodate a lot of patients at once. Lastly, I expected that taking our field notes would be a challenge because writing notes down in front of patients would be awkward and during interviews it would be hard to conduct a good interview while writing the whole time.

As we talked, we discussed the questions as outlined in the assignment starting with patient-centered care, barriers that may hinder it, and how it can be improved. She defined patient-centered care as “The patient being involved in their care. The patient needs to feel they are empowered to ask questions regarding their care, tests, medications, and any consultation that may be scheduled.” She stated that while at our facility our staff did a “great job” accommodating patient and family cares, comforts, and concerns. We agreed, there are times that barriers prevent fully supportive patient-centered care such as, doctors who refuse discuss patient care or concerns, short staffing, and when care management is disorganized. This can be improved by encouraging

The medication reconciliation process compares the medications taken by a patient prior to admission to a facility with medication orders at the facility. The Joint Commission (TJC), the accrediting body for health care organizations, stipulates that the medication reconciliation process must be completed within 24 hours of admission (Sentinel Event Alert, Issue 35, 2006). This process begins with compiling an accurate list of the patient's home medications which are also referred to as prior to admission (PTA) medications. At Poudre Valley Hospital, it is the job of the Pharmacy Admission Specialist (PAS) to compile and verify this list. The PAS must collect, record and communicate to the provider an accurate list of the patient's

Growing up in a little city in the southern part of Nigeria filled with mosquitoes and irregular supply of electricity is an experience that has deeply shaped me. I was the last child from a family of eight, more like ten because of my two older cousins that lived with us for many years. In Nigeria, it is not uncommon to care for relatives even with a low income. My parents, Helen and Matthew, were hardworking and determined people. My dad ran a small sawmill business and my mom hawked produce to put food on our table. Unlike Canada, there is no welfare system put in place to help poor families. This lack of aid means that people like my parents were not well supported by the government, but by each other. One of the most beautiful things in

In my counseling the older adult class we discussed in great detail the different types of culture, ethnicity, sexual orientation, etc. and how it affects the way we as health care providers of helpers should approach a person. I’ve learned in my ongoing time here at CMC that there are all kinds of diversity within the healthcare field, amongst the doctors, case managers, nurse practitioners, registered nurses and others caregivers. There is also a lot of diversity within the patients’ in the hospital. Some patients’ come from within the community and some may just be visiting or coming from surrounding communities. Along with the difference in community and backgrounds that the patients’ come from they also vary by illness or healthcare need. At first it is hard to realize the difference among those that come

Being born in the large west African nation of Nigeria, I was aware of the economic, social, and health hardships faced by many people in my country. This reality did not escape my life and the hardships my family and I faced while in Nigeria had a profound impact in the person I am today. Fortunately for us we were able to win the Visa Lottery and immigrate to America where my passion for learning and science began.

When it comes to analyzing drugs and the dependency that people become on drugs I believe that scheduling is needed because certain scheduling levels have a potential for abuse. The highest schedule for drugs that can cause abuse are drugs that are listed in schedule 1. Now that there are so many different drugs being manufactured and the use of prescription drugs is at a all time high it helps regulate who receives prescription drugs such as teenagers who can become addicted to taking prescription pain killers (Narcotics). Scheduling protect against the potential risk of abused and each drug is classified under certain schedules to promote health of the public and the potential risk these drugs can have on the public. Drugs in criminal cases

During my numerous trips to Nigeria to visit my extended family, I saw firsthand how international health disparities can affect communities. It is often challenging to make the highest standard of care available to all groups and individuals here, and I became increasingly motivated to devote myself to the mission of reducing health disparities in African countries. People in my family, regardless of societal class, suffered from various illnesses including HIV/AIDS, malaria, and polio because of poor access to quality healthcare services. My goal is to return to underserved communities in the United States and Nigeria after being armed with the training from the University of Michigan School of Information that will allow me make

It is significant for the medical provider to note that each individuals have their own cultural preferences of interactions and roles. The Native People have their own social customs; however some of these are typecasts and might not be as shared and many of the medical provider are familiar with those of their persons. Demonstrate great respect to the elderly. In several cases the elders are not familiarized to the new healthcare facilities, the new environments and noises, the caregivers and types treatment; for various of them it might be their first visit to a medical facility, it is significant to ease their awareness and explicate procedures thoroughly. The Silence is respected and is not certainly a negative behavior. Occasionally the

Pharmacist verifies the order by verifying right patient, medication, dose, frequency, duration and patient's allergy. Once the order is verified it prints a label at the dispensing area where the technician has to dispense it. Two copies of label are printed one which goes on the drug and the other one for the record purpose. Technician puts the label on the bag and grab the correct medication for that particular label. Institution here arranges the medication in the alphabetical order, some of them as fast mover drugs, some kept as according to the dosage forms such as vials, and also the sound-alike/look-alike, high alert in order to minimize the errors which can

Faced with a trivial query of the pharmacy assistant, I should be cautious about having any irrational and judgmental plans of action. I should first recall intensively the uses of Aspirin 500mg (Cortal 500) and its toxicological effects if taken abusively than the prescribed dose. Then and there, I would know that the information I would be sharing to the patient will be of accuracy.

We would like to thank you so much for all the hard work that you all have been doing. As Walgreens still continue being one of the top largest retail pharmacy in the United States. Our goal and vision has always been; to be America's most loved pharmacy-led health, wellbeing and beauty retailer and to champion everyone’s right to be happy and healthy and that also include our employees. With that being said we really appreciate your loyalty and the excellent work that you continue to do despite our current predicament.

Our approach to sustainability ties directly to our business purpose of helping people on their path to better health. Our pharmacy dispensing principles aligns with this purpose and extends to our sustainable business operations, workplace, supply chain and communities.

Ms. Priziola your post was very informative about pharmacy practice. Not to mention, it brought back memory when I use to sit in the store for hours because my father had to do inventory every night before leaving the store. I do remember reading that the pharmacy industry were considering to assemble a software for managing pharmacy inventory. With this automation software it was able to tack and report financial saving, solve pharmacy problems, and provide pharmacies the freedom, flexibility to help manage inventory, reorder and generate purchase orders, and share inventory across multiple pharmacies, just to name a few . This software system will be able compatible to the smart phones, tablets and other electronic