Pharmacists, also known as chemists or druggists, are health professionals who control, formulate, preserve and dispense medications and provide advice and counselling on how medicines should be used to achieve maximum benefit, minimal side effects and to avoid drug interactions. They also serve as primary care providers in the community. Pharmacists undergo university or graduate-level education to understand the biochemical mechanisms and actions of drugs, drug uses, therapeutic roles, side effects, potential drug interactions, and monitoring parameters. This is mated to anatomy, physiology, and pathophysiology. Pharmacists interpret and communicate this specialized knowledge to patients, physicians, and other health care providers.
A pharmacy technician is a health care provider who performs pharmacy-related functions, working collaboratively with a licensed pharmacist. Training, certification, licensing, and actual practice of pharmacy technicians varies not only worldwide but in some countries regionally as well as by employer.
The pharmaceutical industry is one of the leading industries in the People's Republic of China, covering synthetic chemicals and drugs, prepared Chinese medicines, medical devices, apparatus and instruments, hygiene materials, packing materials, and pharmaceutical machinery. China has the second-largest pharmaceutical market in the world as of 2017 which is worth US$110 billion. China accounts for 20% of the world's population but only a small fraction of the global drug market. China's changing health-care environment is designed to extend basic health insurance to a larger portion of the population and give individuals greater access to products and services. Following the period of change, the pharmaceutical industry is expected to continue its expansion.
A regional health authority is a state enterprise responsible for specialist healthcare in one of four regions of Norway. Responsibilities of the RHFs include patient treatment, education of medical staff, research and training of patients and relatives. Areas covered by the authorities are hospitals, psychiatry, ambulance service, operation of pharmacies at the hospitals, emergency telephone number and laboratories. The actual performance is done by subsidiary health trusts (HF) that usually consist of one or more hospitals, with associate responsibilities. The authorities are subordinate to the Norwegian Ministry of Health and Care Services.
Central Norway Regional Health Authority is a state-owned regional health authority responsible for operating the hospitals in the counties of Nord-Trøndelag, Sør-Trøndelag and Møre og Romsdal in Norway. Based in Stjørdal, the authority operates five health trusts that operate nine hospitals. It is led by chairman Kolbjørn Almlid and CEO Stig Arild Slørdahl.
Western Norway Regional Health Authority is a state-owned regional health authority responsible for operating the hospitals in the counties of Rogaland and Vestland in Norway. Based in Stavanger the authority operates five health trusts that operate nine hospitals. It is led by chairman Oddvard Nilsen (Conservative) and CEO Herlof Nilssen.
Ditt Apotek is a chain of 80 pharmacies owned and run by independent pharmacists on franchise from Norsk Medisinaldepot, a subsidiary of McKesson Europe. The chain is the fourth largest, and thus smallest, in Norway. The chain was established in 2001 after the deregulation of the pharmacy market in Norway. The sister company Vitusapotek operates 133 pharmacies owned by the mother company.
Central Norway Pharmaceutical Trust is a health trust owned by Central Norway Regional Health Authority that operates four hospital pharmacies at St. Olavs Hospital in Trondheim, Kristiansund Hospital, Molde Hospital and Ålesund Hospital. The pharmacies are part of the Ditt Apotek chain and use Norsk Medisinaldepot as wholesaler. The hospitals in Levanger, Namsos and Orkanger do not use the trust for their pharmacies.
Western Norway Pharmaceutical Trust is a health trust owned by Western Norway Regional Health Authority that operates four hospital pharmacies at Haukeland University Hospital in Bergen, Stavanger Hospital, Haugesund Hospital and Førde Hospital. The pharmacies are part of the Ditt Apotek chain and use Norsk Medisinaldepot as wholesaler.
Southern and Eastern Norway Pharmaceutical Trust is a health trust owned by Southern and Eastern Norway Regional Health Authority that operates nineteen hospital pharmacies. The pharmacies are part of the Ditt Apotek chain and use Norsk Medisinaldepot as wholesaler.
Hospital Pharmacy of North Norway Trust is a health trust owned by Northern Norway Regional Health Authority that operates six hospital pharmacies. The pharmacies are part of the Ditt Apotek chain and use Norsk Medisinaldepot as wholesaler.
Southern and Eastern Norway Regional Health Authority is the largest of the four Regional health authorities in Norway. It covers the counties of Viken, Oslo, Innlandet, Vestfold og Telemark, and Agder, with 57% of the total population in Norway. The authority owns ten health trusts that operate the hospitals as well as the Hospital pharmacy enterprise that operates seventeen pharmacies and Sykehuspartner Trust that operates the information technology systems.
Pharmacies of Norway are dominated by the three large companies Alliance Boots, Apokjeden and Norsk Medisinaldepot. In total there are 606 pharmacies, of which only 16 do not belong to the four dominant chains Apotek 1, Vitusapotek, Boots apotek and Ditt Apotek. 33 pharmacies are state owned as pharmaceutical trusts.
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.
The basic requirement for pharmacists to be considered for registration is often an undergraduate or postgraduate pharmacy degree from a recognized university. In many countries, this involves a four- or five-year course to attain a bachelor of pharmacy or master of pharmacy degree.
A pharmacy is a retail shop which provides pharmaceutical drugs, among other products. At the pharmacy, a pharmacist oversees the fulfillment of medical prescriptions and is available to counsel patients about prescription and over-the-counter drugs or about healthcare and wellness issues. A typical pharmacy would be in the commercial area of a community. Mail-order dispensing is a recent development.
Northern Norway Regional Health Authority is one of four regional health authorities in Norway. It covers the counties of Finnmark, Nordland and Troms. The authority owns five health trusts that operate the hospitals as well as Northern Norway Pharmaceutical Trust that operates nineteen pharmacies.
Healthcare in Derbyshire was the responsibility of five clinical commissioning groups covering North Derbyshire, Southern Derbyshire, Erewash, Hardwick, and Tameside and Glossop. North Derbyshire, Southern Derbyshire, Erewash and Hardwick announced in November 2018 that they planned to merge.
