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There are many effective prescription and non-prescription treatments for delirium, Parkinson’s disease, allergic rhinitis, and other conditions in older adults, according to pharmacists and physicians who presented at the American Geriatrics Society Annual Scientific Meeting in Orlando, Fla., in mid May.

The Maine Board of Pharmacy has directed state attorneys to send a cease-and-desist letter to an online Canadian pharmacy that markets cheap Rx drugs.

A Pennsylvania hospital pharmacist has been arraigned on charges she stole nearly 5,000 oxycodone pills by replacing them with Tylenol, according to a published report.

Due in part to the loss of its UnitedHealth Group business more than two years ago, Express Scripts is laying off pharmacists and other personnel nationwide.

New research published in Obstetrics & Gynecology indicates the oral thrombin inhibitor, dabigatran, and its prodrug, dabigatran etexilate mesylate transfer from pregnant women to their fetuses via the placenta and could potentially affect fetal blood coagulation.

Every now and then when I'm listening to the radio in the car and I hear a female singer lamenting something or other, I think to myself, “That girl is singing my song.” When I read your blog post titled “A dose of pharmacy truth: Report from the front lines,” I almost fell out of my chair, because you were singing my song. I have been that marked pharmacist, except I call it PTFD ([pharmacist targeted for destruction). I didn't coin that term until after I'd already been fired.

The following comes to you courtesy of someone who wishes she’d had this list three months ago …One day you wake up and go to your job, and the next day you don’t have a job to go to. It can be that simple and that complicated, but the real question is, WHAT DO I DO NOW?

In a new FDA study of more than 134,000 Medicare patients, new users of dabigatran (Pradaxa) had a lower risk of clot-related strokes, bleeding in the brain, and death than those taking warfarin. However, dabigatran was associated with a higher risk of major gastrointestinal bleeding than warfarin, according to the FDA’s drug safety communication.

A care transition program for hospital patients with bedside delivery of postdischarge medications and follow-up calls by pharmacists shortly after discharge had the greatest impact on elderly patients, resulting in a lower likelihood of 30-day readmission, according to a report published May 1 in the American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy.

Advocacy issues discussed at the conference included two pieces of proposed legislation that would affect compensation for pharmacists and collaborative practice agreements between pharmacists and physicians.

A brief video, accessed by prescription label QR code scanned with a smartphone, instructs patients in proper drug use and much more.

Now more than ever, action by Congress and CMS is needed to alleviate beneficiaries' concerns about access to pharmacies of their choice.

A subanalysis of the Phase 3 ARISTOTLE trial indicates that apixaban reduces the risk of stroke regardless of whether a patient’s blood pressure is controlled.

Medication adherence suffers when patients do not understand dose or use instructions. Pharmacists can use multisensory tools to help patients learn and remember.

New Rx, new generics, and new OTC

Fifty years ago, advertisers said cigarettes were good for you. Nobody believes that anymore. Maybe 50 years from now, no one will think it's okay for cigarettes to be sold in pharmacies.

Five simple words. Here they are.

This pharmacist's decision to follow her bliss has made countless patients a whole lot happier.

Using verbal, written, and visual communication strategies, pharmacists can empower patients with limited health literacy to manage complex medication regimens.

FDA approves a powder delivery system combining a corticosteroid and a LABA.

Extra points if you can use the word "bone-headed" in your answer.

Since pharmacists dispense potentially harmful medications, it is critical that we also impart information about poison control.

Pharmacies often overlook their licensing requirements or fail to discover the extent to which a license is required for a particular activity. Not good.

Letters, e-mails, comments, and posts from Drug Topics readers

As many as 138 pharmacists in Tampa, Fla. may lose their jobs as part of announced job cuts by Express Scripts, according to a published report.

Pharmacists who work at Kaiser Permanente in Southern California recently picketed outside the company’s offices to protest a lack of progress in contract negotiations. And the union that represents the pharmacists is threatening a strike.

The National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS) Foundation has provided $1.8 million to researchers to study the impact of pharmacist-collaboration in medication management for patients who have been discharged from the hospital.

B. Douglas Hoey, RPh, CEO of the National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA) said the organization supports new legislation introduced May 6 that would give patients greater access to Medicare Part D plan networks.