Pharmacist
Pharmacists are practitioners of the profession of Pharmacy, the field of health sciences focusing on safe and effective medication use. The role of the pharmacist has shifted from the classical "lick, stick, and pour" dispensary role, to being an integrated member of the healthcare team directly involved in patient care. Pharmacists undergo exhaustive drug therapy training to understand precise biochemical mechanisms of action of drugs, drug uses and therapeutic roles, side effects, potential interactions, and monitoring parameters. This is mated to detailed education in anatomy, physiology, and pathophysiology. Professional interpretation and communication of this specialized knowledge to patients, physicians, and other health care providers are vital functions which pharmacists provide, and are central to the provision of safe and effective drug therapy.
The most traditional pharmacist position is that of a community pharmacist, where he is directly available to educate the public about medications and prescriptions, troubleshoot patient issues in drug therapy, and administer certain medications (e.g. immunizations in some jurisdictions). Pharmacists may also practice in a variety of other settings, including hospital, industry, academia, military, and government.
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History
In ancient Japan, the men who fulfilled roles similar to pharmacists were respected. The place of pharmacists in society was settled in theTaihō Code (701) and re-stated in the Yōrō Code (718). Ranked positions in the pre-Heian Imperial court were established; and this organizational structure remained largely intact until the Meiji Restoration (1868). In this highly stable hierarchy, the pharmacists—and even pharmacist assistants—were assigned status superior to all others in health-related fields such as physicians and acupuncturists. In the Imperial household, the pharmacist was even ranked above the two personal physicians of the Emperor.
Nature of the work
Historically, the fundamental role of pharmacists as a healthcare practitioner is to distribute drugs that have been prescribed by a prescriber to patients. In more modern times, pharmacists advise patients and health care providers on the selection, dosages, interactions, and side effects of medications, and act as a learned intermediary between a prescriber and a patient. Pharmacists monitor the health and progress of patients to ensure the safe and effective use of medication. Pharmacists may practice compounding; however, most medicines are produced by pharmaceutical companies in a standard dosage and drug delivery form. In many jurisdictions, pharmacists have prescriptive authority to either independently prescribe under their own authority or in collaboration with a primary care physician through an agreed upon protocol.
In the United States, all graduating pharmacists must now obtain the Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.) degree before they are eligible to sit for the North American Pharmacist Licensure Examination (NAPLEX) to enter into pharmacy practice.[3] Pharmacists are educated inpharmacology, pharmacognosy, chemistry, organic chemistry, biochemistry, pharmaceutical chemistry, microbiology, pharmacy practice(including drug interactions, medicine monitoring, medication management), pharmaceutics, pharmacy law, physiology, anatomy,pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, drug delivery, pharmaceutical care, nephrology, hepatology,cardiology,oncology and compounding of medications. Additional curriculum covers diagnosis with emphasis on laboratory tests, disease state management, therapeutics and prescribing (selecting the most appropriate medication for a given patient).
One of the most important roles that pharmacists are currently taking on is one of pharmaceutical care. Pharmaceutical care involves taking direct responsibility for patients and their disease states, medications, and the management of each in order to improve the outcome for each individual patient. Pharmaceutical care has many benefits that include but are not limited to:
§ Decreased medication errors
§ Increased patient compliance in medication regimen
§ Better chronic disease state management
§ Strong pharmacist-patient relationship
§ Decreased long-term costs of medical care
Pharmacists are often the first point-of-contact for patients with health inquiries. This means that pharmacists have large roles in the assessing medication management in patients, and in referring patients to physicians. These roles may include, but are not limited to:
§ clinical medication management
§ the assessment of patients with undiagnosed or diagnosed conditions and for decisions about the clinical medication management required.
§ specialized monitoring of disease states
§ reviewing medication regimens
§ monitoring of treatment regimens
§ delegating work
§ general health monitoring
§ compounding medicines
§ general health advice
§ providing specific education to patients about disease states and medications
§ oversight of dispensing medicines on prescription
§ provision of non-prescription medicines
§ counseling and advice on optimal use of medicines
§ advice and treatment of common ailments
§ referrals to other health professionals if necessary
§ dosing drugs in renal and hepatic failure
§ pharmacokinetic evaluation
§ education of physicians and other health care providers on medications and their proper use
§ limited prescribing of medications only in collaboration with other health care professionals
§ providing pharmaceutical information
§ promoting public health by administering immunizations
Education
There are educational requirements that are very well needed to become a Pharmacist. To start off this 6 year process, there has to be a 2 year completion of specific pre-professional (undergraduate) coursework followed by 4 years of professional academic studies. Most colleges have a pre-pharmacy program which allows students to work towards their Bachelor of Science. It is common that most people who pursue the career of a Pharmacist, normally gets a Bachelor’s degree. Before a person graduates a Pharmacy school, he/she must take three tests. The Pharmacy College Admissions test (PCAT), NAPLEX and MPJE.The primary goal is basically that every student graduates with a Doctorate of Pharmacy (PharmD).
Attending Pharmacy school is like a process. There are multiple classes that are mandatory to be taken such as:
§ Biology
§ Organic Chemistry
§ General Physics
§ Public Speaking
§ All Communications
§ Anatomy
§ Physiology
§ Microbiology
§ Biochemistry
§ Pharmaceutical Care
§ Pharmacology
§ Pharmaceutics
§ Toxicology
§ Molecular Biology
§ Humanities
§ Economics
There are physical aspects as for training for pharmacy school besides taking classes, and memorizing information. There are certain additional requirements needed to be met before graduating. For instance, there is a certain amount of hours for community service. The community service will include working in hospitals, clinics, and retail.
The role of pharmacy education, pharmacist licensing and graduate continuing education vary from country to country and between regions/localities within countries. In most countries, prospective pharmacists study pharmacy at a pharmacy school or related institution. Upon graduation, they are licensed either nationally or by region to dispense medication of various types in the settings for which they have been trained.
In the United States, a pharmacist must complete 4 years of graduate level training at a pharmacy school, usually after receiving a bachelors degree. A bachelors degree is not required as most pharmacy schools only require two years of undergraduate education and the completion of a list of prerequisites. Competition to obtain entry into pharmacy school, however, limits the number of students admitted without a bachelors degree. There are currently 116 accredited pharmacy schools in the United States, ( late 2009 ) and 6 of these schools offer "accelerated" 3 year PharmD programs by attending school almost year round - with less breaks for summer and holidays. There also is one fully accredited "distance/online" 4 year PharmD program offered by Creighton University. Pharmacists receive a PharmD (Doctor of Pharmacy) upon graduation, and licensure after passing the NAPLEX and MPJE.
Earnings and Wage
United States of America 2010 Pharmacy Compensation Survey"
§ Directors of Pharmacy $125,200
§ Retail Staff Pharmacists $113,600
§ Hospital Staff Pharmacists $111,700
§ Mail Order Staff Pharmacists $109,300
§ Clinical Pharmacists $113,400
(United States Bureau of Labor Statistics - Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2010-11 Edition):
Median annual wages of wage and salary pharmacists in May 2008 were $106,410. The middle 50 percent earned between $92,670 and $121,310 a year. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $77,390, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $131,440 a year.
Australia
Wages for pharmacists in Australia appear to have stagnated.The award wages for a pharmacist is $812 a week.Pharmacist graduates are the lowest paid university graduates most years. Most pharmacists do earn above the award wage; the average male pharmacist earns $65,000, a female pharmacist averages $56,500.Over recent years, wages have stagnated, and even gone backwards. There are more graduates expected in the next few years making it even harder to get a job. Job security and increase in wages with regards to c.p.i could be unlikely. This is due to the large numbers of pharmacy graduates in recent years, and government desire to lower PBS costs.Contract and casual work is becoming more common.A contract pharmacist is self-employed and often called a locum; these pharmacists may be hired for one shift or for a longer period of time. There are accounts of underemployment and unemployment emerging recently.
Canada
The wages in Canada at about CAD $95,000 are slightly better than Australia but not as good as U.S.A. In the fiscal year 2010-2011 the category for foreign pharmacists to migrate to Canada was filled by march 2011. 1000 foreign pharmacists were taken. It seems there could be an over supply of pharmacist in Canada soon as well, some discussion forums speculate that it may no longer be on the NOC list for immigration to Canada.
Specialties
Practice specialization
Specialties include:
§ Academic Pharmacist
§ Clinical Pharmacy Specialist (consisting of many subspecialties such as ambulatory care, cardiology, critical care, emergency medicine, geriatrics, HIV pharmacy, infectious diseases, internal medicine, nephrology, nuclear, nutrition support, oncology, palliative care/pain management, pediatrics, pharmacotherapy, psychiatric, solid organ transplant, toxicology, etc.)
§ Community Pharmacist
§ Drug Information Pharmacist
§ Home Health Pharmacist
§ Industrial Pharmacist
§ Locum Pharmacist
§ Military Pharmacist
§ Nuclear Pharmacist
§ Oncology Pharmacist
§ Regulatory-Affairs Pharmacist
§ Veterinary Pharmacist
§ Pharmacist Clinical Pathologist
United States
In the United States, a pharmacist can become certified in recognized specialty practice areas by passing an examination administered by one of several credentialing boards.
§ The Board of Pharmaceutical Specialtiescertifies pharmacists in six specialties:
§ The Commission for Certification in Geriatric Pharmacy certifies pharmacists in geriatrics specialty practice.
§ The American Board of Applied Toxicologycertifies pharmacists and other medical professionals in applied toxicology.
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