A Career

A Look At A Career In Community Pharmacy

"...Pharmacists are the principal resource to patients and other

health professionals in assuring appropriate use of, and optimal

therapeutic outcomes from medications" (Shall I Study Pharmacy 1).

Pharmacists are health care professionals responsible for the dispensation

of prescription and non-prescription medications. Many pharmacists are

consultants to the general public along with physicians and other health

care providers. One of the earliest known pharmacists in the United States

was Governor Winthrop of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Pharmacy education

began in the United States at the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy, founded

in 1821 and is still operating today (Cosgrove 71). A pharmacist must

complete much training, be licensed, and take an oath before he/she can

become a pharmacist. The commitment of a pharmacist, as stated in the

professional commitment statement is a life long responsibility to the

people of the community in which that person works:

The principal goal of pharmaceutical care is to achieve

positive outcomes from the use of medication which improves

patient's quality of life. These outcomes include: cure

of a disease, elimination or reduction of the symptoms

of a disease, arresting or slowing of a disease process,

preventing of disease, diagnosis of disease, or desired

alterations in physiological processes, all with minimum

risks to the patient (Shall I Study Pharmacy 1).

The pharmacist must perform numerous tasks sometimes under unfavorable

conditions, and must acquire many skills through much training.

As I look to choose a direction for my life, I know I want to

attend college. I am interested in a career where I can directly help

people. I am also interested in the medical professions but do not wish to

become a doctor. I feel that the career I choose should be something I

greatly enjoy doing as I will probably do this for the rest of my life. I

am a very dedicated, hard-worker with excellent social skills and a

continuous desire to attain knowledge about various subjects. A pharmacist

must be dependable, conscientious, scrupulous in their handling of the

drugs, sympathetic to their customers, and above all ethical (Hayes 656).

A pharmacist must have exceptional math skills and scientific knowledge.

They must also be realistic, wanting to see immediate results of their

work; curious and motivated, working hard to find concrete solutions

independently; sociable, working directly with the customers to answer

their questions and concerns; artistic and sensitive, showing sympathy and

compassion toward each customer; and most importantly conventional, working

with details, while submitting and keeping neat, organized forms and charts

(McKenzie 12).

As a pharmacist, one must have many skills to successfully complete

a day's work. A pharmacist must be good with people and is expected to

advise not only customers but physicians on the selection, dosage,

interactions, and side effects of the medication they may prescribe. To do

this each pharmacist must have a great deal of knowledge and understanding

of the use, composition, and effect of the drugs they will be dispensing

("Pharmacists" 168). A pharmacist's job is now made easier by computer

programs that help to alert them of interactions and side effects of the

drugs they dispense. To successfully use this, though, a pharmacist must

also have good computer skills. Pharmacists must be especially meticulous

in their dispensation of medication. They must carefully read and decipher

the prescriptions and counsel the patient as to the correct dosage and use

of the medication. They also must be able to answer any question that a

patient may have about either prescription or non-prescription medications

(Cosgrove 72). Besides dispensing medication and informing patients about

the drugs, pharmacists are expected to do a lot more. They must have

accurate records of customers; complete and submit insurance forms,

inventory tracking reports, and financial records; and monitor the pharmacy

stock. A pharmacist must also review all the new medical literature he/she

receives and occasionally retrieve it himself/herself so that he/she can

keep updated on any changes that he/she may have to inform patients about

(Hayes 654-655). Pharmacists receive over two billion requests a year for

on the spot information, making