OxyContin: A tragedy in five acts
Five facets of the OxyContin dilemma
Nontraditional PharmD degree: Was it worth it?
A longtime RPh ponders the midlife cost of her new PharmD degree.
Letters to Drug Topics: January 2013
Pharmacy techs speak out.
Are pharmacists slipping in the popularity polls?
Are pharmacists losing the love?
Questions are the answers
How do we empower patients who do not want drug therapy to take their routine medications? Actually, one simple tweak can make all of the difference. We tell them ‘why’ they are taking the medication.
Specialization is pharmacy's future
It may seem like pharmacy has reached a very low point. One pharmacist argues that specialization could be the best way forward.
Healthcare provider status for pharmacists is long overdue
The time has come for pharmacists to be considered healthcare providers under the Social Security Act.
Warn about herbal supplements risk
Herbal supplements are quite popular among your patients, but too few pharmacists are taking the time to properly educate about the risks.
Are you a role model for the next generation of pharmacists?
Thinking about the future of pharmacy? Remember that you serve as a role model for the next generation of pharmacists.
Unmeasurable conversations. Priceless.
In between the pharmacist activities that can be easily measured, you might find yourself engaging in conversations with your patients.
Letters: January 2013
Readers discuss what rights pharmacists can expect and drug disposal options.
The future is now
Instead of thinking of the future as something to come, pharmacists should act like the future is here today.
Affordable Care Act opens door to charge professional fees
The Affordable Care Act may allow you to make money by filling in the gaps that you already do.
Goal of improved health may fall short despite increased pharmacy workload
A pharmacist looks at the life expectancy numbers in the U.S. and wonders how healthcare could have come so far, but still be failing patients.
The reunion: A time to reminisce about the good times or not
After attending a high school reunion, a pharmacist reflects on what he'd learn through a reunion of his pharmacy career.
The role of social media in pharmacy practice
The first in a series of articles on the work that social media can do for pharmacists,
Letters
Readers discuss taking the time to research, the need for care when purchasing drugs, the need to be more visible to the public, and arguing that cyberconsulting is too dangerous to practice in.
Continue to push for provider status
Two pharmacy students argue that the push needs to continue for attaining provider status and it's important to include students.
Next steps in patient care: Diabetes management
Blood glucose control is the focus of diabetes care, but a holistic approach is needed to meet all of a patient's needs.
First-in-nation drug-disposal mandate aims to protect patients
The safe disposal of drugs helps more than just patients.
The side effect of success
A pharmacist muses on how being successful can lead to not questioning the status quo.
How to solve every problem in pharmacy
A pharmacist reveals that the solution to all of pharmacy's problems: You get what you pay for.
Meningitis outbreak investigation is a time for reassessment
A look at the conditions that led to the recent fungal meningitis outbreak illustrate missed opportunities.
In the Land of Business and Politics, you have to speak the language
While pharmacists learn many things in pharmacy school, Business and Politics are not among them. Find out why you need to know both to navigate the real world.
Proposed "Patient Bill of Rights for Prescription Drugs" under ACA
The ACA has led to some early reforms popularly known as "The Patient Bill of Rights." Here's a proposal for a similar platform specifically addressing Rx drugs.
Readers discuss the pharmacist's role in OTC selection, voice appreciation for Stan Illich's views, argue that pharmacists need to realize who's in the driver's seat, and share their appreciation for JP.
Feeling like a real pharmacist
You leave the day job and what happens? The most fulfilling moments a pharmacist can have occur when you're nowhere near a pharmacy.
All wet: A pharmacy parable
Suppose a country were facing a flood of Biblical proportions but determined to focus on bringing in more tourism; what would you say about its priorities? Now suppose that country were a professional organization and ... well, read on.
Pharmacists: Who owns your soul?
Remember when hardworking coal miners "owed their souls to the company store"? Look a little closer to home and you just might find that someone you know is in a very similar spot.
PBMs and what they're doing to our healthcare: Time to shed some light
The ways of PBMs are convoluted and mysterious. If we don't keep a sharp eye out, one of these days we'll be getting prescriptions out of vending machines.