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Every time pharmacists consult a patient about a prescription they need to address the safety of its use and proper disposal.

E-prescribing was supposed to reduce prescription errors by eliminating the problem of illegible Rxs. The result? Nowadays prescriptions are easier to read - and just as full of errors.

Patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus who received metformin and then added insulin were at higher risk of all-cause mortality than those who added a sulfonylurea, according to a report published June 11 in JAMA.

If a pharmacist has to hide what he is doing, then maybe he shouldn't be practicing pharmacy.

You can own your own pharmacy, and it can give you a fulfilling life. But you gotta play the angles.

New Rx, generics, and OTC for pharmacists

Shrinking budgets and drug shortages are two of the biggest challenges faced by hospital pharmacy directors, according to a new report.

Not unexpectedly, in May Drug Topics readers were drawn to stories written by their peers, as four of the top 10 stories were opinion pieces. With a promotional assist from The Cynical Pharmacist, Kim Ankenbruck’s blog “A dose of pharmacy truth: Report from the front lines” was our most-read story in May.

From reader Bill Tarr comes the second article in Drug Topics' new series, Pathways through Pharmacy. While the first signs of his professional direction may have come as something of a surprise, he rose to the challenge and found that it gave him a vehicle for the good life.

California is considering changes to state law designed to make the labels on prescription drug containers easier to understand.

Physician Assistants. Nurse Practitioners. Nurse Clinicians. Nurse Anesthetists. Need we say more?

The American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) has introduced a new logo and tagline that it said better represents the group’s mission and vision.

Walgreens has introduced a new service for visually impaired patients, a talking prescription device that attaches to the prescription bottle, providing the prescription medication label instructions and alerting patients to take their medication.

Antimicrobial stewardship teams that include infectious disease (ID) pharmacists and physicians in hospital settings can encourage more judicious use of antibiotics, resulting in lower mortality and cost savings, according to a report published online for the American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy.

The number-crunchers add to the story.

An Oklahoma pharmacist and the pharmacy department at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) in Boston have received the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists’ (ASHP’s) Chief Executive Officer’s Award for Courageous Service.

Current healthcare reform initiatives emphasize high quality, safe, and cost-effective care, and greater accountability for those who seek to provide it. The ability of key stakeholders along the care continuum to work collaboratively will be critical to achievement of these goals. In response to these priorities, the Hospital and Health-System Pharmacy Practice Model Initiative (PPMI) highlights a future-oriented model that supports and recognizes the impact of pharmacists, in particular, as providers of direct patient care.

Cannabis extracts show strong potential for treatment of various medical conditions. The same cannot be said about smoked marijuana. Here are a few of the reasons.

FDA approved the first generic versions of Celebrex (celecoxib) last week. The drug is used to treat rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, short-term (acute) pain, and other conditions.

The most powerful drug in your pharmacy is not what you may think.

CVS Caremark in July will begin offering patients access to specialty medications at local CVS pharmacies with the launch of Specialty Connect, a specialty prescription services program.

The union representing more than 1,400 pharmacists employed by Kaiser Permanente Southern California has reached a tentative agreement with the company, heading off a threatened strike planned for June 2.

A former West El Paso, Texas pharmacist will represent himself in a retrial on charges he fraudulently billed insurers for prescriptions never dispensed and sold drugs to an undercover federal agent, according to a published report.

In a nonacademic healthcare system, an advanced clinical pharmacy services program, created and led by an internal medicine-trained clinical pharmacy specialist, made a positive impact on hospitalized patients through a number of drug intervention recommendations.

The American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) is providing quality improvement strategies for pharmacy practice settings across the continuum of care.

With this article, a group project from reader Pete Kreckel, Rph, and his wife, daughter, and son-in-law, Drug Topics launches a new series that will present your stories: how you came to pharmacy, how your path unfolded, and where it led you. Our goal is to show new pharmacists how many choices and opportunities appear to those whose minds are open to new possibilities. Here's your chance to share what you have learned through your life in pharmacy! Send your contributions to drugtopics@advanstar.com today.

Last fall in light of the prescription opioid abuse epidemic, FDA informed pharmaceutical companies that make opioids that they would be required to conduct postmarketing studies of extended-release/long-acting (ER/LA) opioid analgesics.

Back in 2010, D’Youville College in Buffalo, NY, opened its pharmacy school and welcomed students into a new, $23 million building. The next year, Roosevelt University near Chicago joined the pharmacy school bandwagon and welcomed its first pharmacy students.

An educational video, released at the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy annual meeting in May, helps pharmacists identify the ‘red flags’ of prescription drug abuse and diversion when they dispense controlled substances.

Although there are still unfilled pharmacist jobs in hospitals and health systems, the vacancy rate for pharmacists in such settings is as low as it’s been in more than a decade, according to a staffing survey by the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists.