A pharmacist, also known as a chemist in Commonwealth English, is a healthcare professional who is knowledgeable about preparation, mechanism of action, clinical usage and legislation of medications in order to dispense them safely to the public and to provide consultancy services. A pharmacist also often serves as a primary care provider in the community and offers services, such as health screenings and immunizations.
Pharmacy is the science and practice of discovering, producing, preparing, dispensing, reviewing and monitoring medications, aiming to ensure the safe, effective, and affordable use of medicines. It is a miscellaneous science as it links health sciences with pharmaceutical sciences and natural sciences. The professional practice is becoming more clinically oriented as most of the drugs are now manufactured by pharmaceutical industries. Based on the setting, pharmacy practice is either classified as community or institutional pharmacy. Providing direct patient care in the community of institutional pharmacies is considered clinical pharmacy.
Pharmacy and Therapeutics (P&T) is a committee at a hospital or a health insurance plan that decides which drugs will appear on that entity's drug formulary. The committee usually consists of healthcare providers involved in prescribing, dispensing, and administering medications, as well as administrators who evaluate medication use. They must weigh the costs and benefits of each drug and decide which ones provide the most efficacy per dollar. This is one aspect of pharmaceutical policy. P&T committees utilize an evidence-based approach to drive change within health systems/plans by changing existing policies and bringing up-to-date research to support medical decision-making.
George F. Archambault, Ph.G., Ph.C., J.D. was the first pharmacy liaison officer for the United States Public Health Service and considered the “father of consultant pharmacy”. On April 22, 1999, for his 90th birthday party, Deputy Surgeon General Kenneth P. Moritsugu proclaimed Archambault a “living treasure of the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps.”
A veterinary pharmacist is a specially trained pharmacist who dispenses veterinary drugs and supplies or products and advice to owners of companion animals and livestock. In addition, they advise the regulatory bodies and are involved in the formulation of veterinary drugs. Veterinary pharmacy is a field of pharmacy practice, in which veterinary pharmacists may compound medications, fill prescriptions, and manage drug therapies for animals. Veterinary pharmacists are licensed pharmacists who specialize in the distribution of medications for animals.
Clinical pharmacy is the branch of pharmacy in which clinical pharmacists provide direct patient care that optimizes the use of medication and promotes health, wellness, and disease prevention. Clinical pharmacists care for patients in all health care settings but the clinical pharmacy movement initially began inside hospitals and clinics. Clinical pharmacists often work in collaboration with physicians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, and other healthcare professionals. Clinical pharmacists can enter into a formal collaborative practice agreement with another healthcare provider, generally one or more physicians, that allows pharmacists to prescribe medications and order laboratory tests.
Gloria Niemeyer Francke was an American pharmacist. She became assistant director of the American Pharmacists Association (APhA) Division of Hospital Pharmacy (1946–1956); executive secretary of the American Society of Hospital Pharmacists (1949–1960); and research associate for the Audit of Pharmaceutical Service in Hospitals (1956–1964).
Pharmacy residency is education a pharmacist can pursue beyond the degree required for licensing as a pharmacist. A pharmacy residency program allows for the implementation of skill set and knowledge acquired in pharmacy school through interaction with the public either in a hospital setting or community practice. The program is done over a span of about 2yrs after graduation from pharmacy school and licensure as a pharmacist. Pharmacy residency helps improve the resume of a pharmacist so as to increase chances of obtaining employment outside community practice. A 2022 review suggested that there is sufficient evidence that residency develops key competencies for junior pharmacists.
In pharmacology, hazardous drugs are drugs that are known to cause harm, which may or may not include genotoxicity. Genotoxicity might involve carcinogenicity, the ability to cause cancer in animal models, humans or both; teratogenicity, which is the ability to cause defects on fetal development or fetal malformation; and lastly hazardous drugs are known to have the potential to cause fertility impairment, which is a major concern for most clinicians. These drugs can be classified as antineoplastics, cytotoxic agents, biologic agents, antiviral agents and immunosuppressive agents. This is why safe handling of hazardous drugs is crucial.
Pharmaceutical care is a pharmacy practice model developed in the 1990s that describes patient-centered medication management services performed by pharmacists.
Joseph T. DiPiro is professor and Associate Vice President of Health Sciences for Faculty Affairs at Virginia Commonwealth University From 2014 to 2022 he was Dean and Archie O. McCalley Chair, School of Pharmacy.
Telepharmacy is the delivery of pharmaceutical care via telecommunications to patients in locations where they may not have direct contact with a pharmacist. It is an instance of the wider phenomenon of telemedicine, as implemented in the field of pharmacy. Telepharmacy services include drug therapy monitoring, patient counseling, prior authorization and refill authorization for prescription drugs, and monitoring of formulary compliance with the aid of teleconferencing or videoconferencing. Remote dispensing of medications by automated packaging and labeling systems can also be thought of as an instance of telepharmacy. Telepharmacy services can be delivered at retail pharmacy sites or through hospitals, nursing homes, or other medical care facilities.
Harvey A.K. Whitney (1894-1957) was an American pharmacist. He was instrumental in the formation and was the first chairman and President of the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, where he served from 1942 to 1943. He also co-founded The Bulletin of the ASHP in 1943 which later became the American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy. The Harvey A.K. Whitney Lecture Award, considered to be the highest award in health-system pharmacy, is named after him.
The American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy is a biweekly peer-reviewed medical journal covering all aspects of drug therapy and pharmacy practice specific to hospitals. It was established in 1943 and is published by the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists. The editor-in-chief is Daniel J. Cobaugh.
A collaborative practice agreement (CPA) is a legal document in the United States that establishes a legal relationship between clinical pharmacists and collaborating physicians that allows for pharmacists to participate in collaborative drug therapy management (CDTM).
The Joint Commission of Pharmacy Practitioners (JCPP) is the largest professional delegation representing the interests of pharmacists within the United States. JCPP represents 13 professional associations in the field of pharmacy, developing consensus policy directives for the profession. It is well known for the 2014 development of "The Pharmacists’ Patient Care Process," which provides broad, consensus guidelines for how clinical pharmacists should practice.
Donald E. Letendre is an American university professor and pharmacist. He is the Dean of the University of Iowa College of Pharmacy.
Autonomous pharmacy is an approach to medication management that seeks to create a more automated and data-driven process for medication inventory and dispensing. The main concept behind autonomous pharmacy is to use technology in place of manual medication processes in order to help healthcare providers reduce medication errors, decrease costs and save staff time. Autonomous pharmacy may use a combination of hardware, software and technology-enabled services to allow pharmacists to more effectively manage medication dispersal.
Marie A. Chisholm-Burns is an educator, university administrator and pharmacist. As of 2024 she is the Executive Vice President and Provost of Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU). She is also the J.S. Reinschmidt Endowed Professor in the OHSU School of Medicine Department of Surgery.
