Moral Dilemmas of the Pharmacist -Ways of Coping with Ethical Problems in Light of Case Studies-

Abstract

Pharmacological education in Japan has focused less on the cultivation of medical care providers than on fostering personnel who could develop and manufacture medical products. Pharmacists who passed the national board were able to take part in providing medical treatment even if they lacked the knowledge or capabilities required in a clinical setting. Given both this educational background and the systematic problem that there was no division of labor in the pharmacological field, and given that they operated in a work environment where there was almost no opportunity for direct contact with patients, pharmacists for many years lacked self-awareness as persons who handle medical products that can affect human lives, and failed to take full account of their role as administrators of these products. However, there has been a significant change in the role of pharmacists and in the environment in which they operate since the pharmacist discipline was first established. Whereas in the past the job of pharmacists was simply to deal with the materials of medical products, the job has changed to involve dealing directly with patients. Currently, most pharmacists are engaged in work that provides direct support to people. Ethical behavior is demanded in clinical situations that involve people's interaction with one another. The need is urgent, therefore, for us to apply an understanding of ethical theory and conduct systematic case method-based ethical education to cultivate an ethical outlook among pharmacological students and pharmacists.