A pharmacist is a healthcare professional who specializes in the preparation,dispensing,and management of medications and who provides pharmaceutical advice and guidance. Pharmacists often serve as primary care providers in the community,and may offer other services such as health screenings and immunizations.
The management of HIV/AIDS normally includes the use of multiple antiretroviral drugs as a strategy to control HIV infection. There are several classes of antiretroviral agents that act on different stages of the HIV life-cycle. The use of multiple drugs that act on different viral targets is known as highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART). HAART decreases the patient's total burden of HIV,maintains function of the immune system,and prevents opportunistic infections that often lead to death. HAART also prevents the transmission of HIV between serodiscordant same-sex and opposite-sex partners so long as the HIV-positive partner maintains an undetectable viral load.
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.
The spread of HIV/AIDS has affected millions of people worldwide;AIDS is considered a pandemic. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimated that in 2016 there were 36.7 million people worldwide living with HIV/AIDS,with 1.8 million new HIV infections per year and 1 million deaths due to AIDS. Misconceptions about HIV and AIDS arise from several different sources,from simple ignorance and misunderstandings about scientific knowledge regarding HIV infections and the cause of AIDS to misinformation propagated by individuals and groups with ideological stances that deny a causative relationship between HIV infection and the development of AIDS. Below is a list and explanations of some common misconceptions and their rebuttals.
Post-exposure prophylaxis,also known as post-exposure prevention (PEP),is any preventive medical treatment started after exposure to a pathogen in order to prevent the infection from occurring.
A needlestick injury is the penetration of the skin by a hypodermic needle or other sharp object that has been in contact with blood,tissue or other body fluids before the exposure. Even though the acute physiological effects of a needlestick injury are generally negligible,these injuries can lead to transmission of blood-borne diseases,placing those exposed at increased risk of infection from disease-causing pathogens,such as the hepatitis B virus (HBV),hepatitis C virus (HCV),and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Among healthcare workers and laboratory personnel worldwide,more than 25 blood-borne virus infections have been reported to have been caused by needlestick injuries. In addition to needlestick injuries,transmission of these viruses can also occur as a result of contamination of the mucous membranes,such as those of the eyes,with blood or body fluids,but needlestick injuries make up more than 80% of all percutaneous exposure incidents in the United States. Various other occupations are also at increased risk of needlestick injury,including law enforcement,laborers,tattoo artists,food preparers,and agricultural workers.
Emtricitabine/tenofovir,sold under the brand name Truvada among others,is a fixed-dose combination antiretroviral medication used to treat and prevent HIV/AIDS. It contains the antiretroviral medications emtricitabine and tenofovir disoproxil. For treatment,it must be used in combination with other antiretroviral medications. For prevention before exposure,in those who are at high risk,it is recommended along with safer sex practices. It does not cure HIV/AIDS. Emtricitabine/tenofovir is taken by mouth.
Infection with HIV,a retrovirus,can be managed with treatment but without treatment can lead to a spectrum of conditions including AIDS.
Pre-exposure prophylaxis for HIV prevention,commonly known as PrEP, is a form of pre-exposure prophylaxis to prevent HIV infection,the cause of HIV/AIDS.
Pharmacoeconomics refers to the scientific discipline that compares the value of one pharmaceutical drug or drug therapy to another. It is a sub-discipline of health economics. A pharmacoeconomic study evaluates the cost and effects of a pharmaceutical product. Pharmacoeconomic studies serve to guide optimal healthcare resource allocation,in a standardized and scientifically grounded manner.
Pharmaceutical policy is a branch of health policy that deals with the development,provision and use of medications within a health care system. It embraces drugs,biologics,vaccines and natural health products.
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.
Pharmacy in China involves the activities engaged in the preparation,standardization and dispensing of drugs,and its scope includes the cultivation of plants that are used as drugs,the synthesis of chemical compounds of medicinal value,and the analysis of medicinal agents. Pharmacists in China are responsible for the preparation of the dosage forms of drugs,such as tablets,capsules,and sterile solutions for injection. They compound physicians',dentists',and veterinarians' prescriptions for drugs. Pharmacological activities are also closely related to pharmacy in China.
Pharmacoepidemiology is the study of the uses and effects of drugs in well-defined populations.
HIV prevention refers to practices that aim to prevent the spread of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). HIV prevention practices may be undertaken by individuals to protect their own health and the health of those in their community,or may be instituted by governments and community-based organizations as public health policies.
Infectious diseases within American correctional settings are a concern within the public health sector. The corrections population is susceptible to infectious diseases through exposure to blood and other bodily fluids,drug injection,poor health care,prison overcrowding,demographics,security issues,lack of community support for rehabilitation programs,and high-risk behaviors. The spread of infectious diseases,such as HIV and other sexually transmitted infections,hepatitis C (HCV),hepatitis B (HBV),and tuberculosis,result largely from needle-sharing,drug use,and consensual and non-consensual sex among prisoners. HIV and hepatitis C need specific attention because of the specific public health concerns and issues they raise.
HIV in pregnancy is the presence of an HIV/AIDS infection in a woman while she is pregnant. There is a risk of HIV transmission from mother to child in three primary situations:pregnancy,childbirth,and while breastfeeding. This topic is important because the risk of viral transmission can be significantly reduced with appropriate medical intervention,and without treatment HIV/AIDS can cause significant illness and death in both the mother and child. This is exemplified by data from The Centers for Disease Control (CDC):In the United States and Puerto Rico between the years of 2014–2017,where prenatal care is generally accessible,there were 10,257 infants in the United States and Puerto Rico who were exposed to a maternal HIV infection in utero who did not become infected and 244 exposed infants who did become infected.
David DuPuy Celentano is a noted epidemiologist and professor who has contributed significantly to the promotion of research on HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs). He is the Charles Armstrong chair of the Department of Epidemiology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. He holds joint appointments with the school’s departments of Health Policy and Management,Health Behavior and Society,and International Health,and the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine’s Division of Infectious Diseases.
Drug recycling,also referred to as medication redispensing or medication re-use,is the idea that health care organizations or patients with unused drugs can transfer them in a safe and appropriate way to another patient in need. The purpose of such a program is reducing medication waste,thereby saving healthcare costs,enlarging medications’availability and alleviating the environmental burden of medication.
Godefridus Johannes Petrus "Frits" van Griensven is a pioneering Dutch scientist in epidemiology,sociology and public health. Most of his work is on addressing the HIV epidemic among men who have sex with men and other HIV key populations.
