Pharmacies are increasingly becoming more common in the growing infrastructure of our country. Millions of patients enter pharmacies every day in order to fulfill their doctors prescriptions. One has to wonder how many of these patients actually know what they are taking and if there are any risk factors for the medication they are being prescribed. A doctor can only help a patient so much when it comes to medication, this is where pharmacists step in. Pharmacists are evolving, no longer are they limited to being isolated behind a counter, they are stepping out into the field in order to improve patient health, cut costs, and ultimately become just as important as the family doctor.
With millions of prescriptions being filled out each day by pharmacists around the world, one has to wonder if any costly mistakes are being made. Pharmacists only screen a small percentage of what they produce, and even then, it’s hard for them to know if there will be any adverse reactions in their patients. Screening is one way pharmacists can detect these problems ahead of time and prevent adverse reactions in in patients. The importance of this is stressed by an article written by Rupp, M., which provides an analysis on the economic value of community pharmacists who regularly screen and correct prescribing related problems. Three judges evaluated the pharmacist interventions on problematic prescriptions in five states. Their conclusion was that 28.3% of the identified problems could have resulted in moderate to severe patient harm if the pharmacist had not taken action to correct the prescription. They also concluded that clinical pharmacy services can and do make a different by enhancing the positive patient outcomes and reducing the negative. (Rupp, M.) This is a big issue in the United States because not many pharmacists or patients take charge to schedule appointments with each other to discuss potential risks with medication.
After getting out of the hospital, patients are left to fend for themselves when it comes to medication. The doctor can only explain so much to a patient about their medication and might not know if there will be any effect or adverse reactions to the medication. Doctors rarely follow up on patients when it comes to medication because the patients care ends as soon as they leave the doctors office. This is another area in which pharmacists need to stress patient counseling. Pharmacist intervention in newly discharged patients greatly decreases adverse drug effects. After most patients are discharged from a hospital they are given medication and left to fend for themselves. This can lead to medication tolerance and/or adverse side effects. (Schnipper, J., et al. 2006) As many as half of the nation’s patients do not take their medications as prescribed, costing nearly $300 billion a year in emergency room visits, hospital stays and other medical expenditures. (
Pharmacists don’t always know what specific medication patients are taking when they fill their prescription. This can also lead to serious side effects and adverse patient health. One specific way of solving this issue is by creating a personalized database for each and every patient so pharmacists can see if their will be any potential side effects with any given medication. Pharmacists are an integral part in the education and protection of their patients just as doctors are. With access to patients medical information they can catch on to any potential side effects a particular medication can cause. In the long run this information can prove to be invaluable to not only a patients well being, but the pharmacist too. (Milonig, M., Jackson, & T., Ellis, W. 2002)
Patients with diabetes are very fragile when it comes to their condition. They cannot always be expected to keep track of their condition no matter how much a doctor tells them. This can lead to potential life threatening conditions. One study by the University at Buffalo concluded that “enhancing the patient's access to care through collaborative physician-pharmacist relationships can yield lower blood glucose levels, improve the overall metabolic profile and reduce costs to the payer.”(Slazak, E., 2010). This is a very important factor in pharmacist-patient intervention because if pharmacists can both help patients and also provide economical benefits, then it should be proven to work anywhere it is put to use. This method should provide both patients and pharmacists a better peace of mind when working with each other. It will also help greatly to cut costs, especially in the current condition of not only our national, but global economy.
The importance of pharmacist patient involvement is crucial in todays ever growing society. One can no longer just depend on the family doctor for the well being of ones family and self. It is up to pharmacists to step in and take control whether it’s cutting costs, conferencing with patients, or just helping one decide what medication is best. This is why pharmacists should be taking a greater strive in order to communicate with their patients.
