National Pharmacy Organizations Research Articles

Role of pharmacy organizations in transforming the profession: The case of pharmaceutical care

At is my pleasure to discuss the role of national pharmacy organizations in fostering the practice philosophy of pharmaceutical care. Let me begin with a caveat. I have invested substantial time and energy in bringing my own organization board with the concept. Hence, I am hardly a disinterested observer. Nevertheless, I have tried, in preparing these remarks, to be objective; you will have to decide for yourself how well that goal has been achieved. An issue that has interested me for a long time is the extent to which, and the pace at which, a professional organization can influence change in the practice of pharmacy. In the framework of the of model of Everett Rogers,1 can a pharmacy association be an effective, forceful change agent? This is the underlying question I address in this paper, using pharmaceutical care as a case study. Research on the diffusion of innovations shows that (1) the time it takes for innovations to be adopted varies but the overall pattern of adoption is predictable, innovation to innova-

Development and Implementation of a Multidisciplinary Anticoagulation Educational Program

Staff development programs have been developed by national pharmacy organizations to improve clinical skills and expand the services offered by pharmacists. Most of these programs do not involve the training of other health care professionals. This article describes an anticoagulation training program designed not only for pharmacists, but for physicians and nurses as well. For pharmacists, the effectiveness of educational interventions was assessed by pretest/post-test/surveys with an average increase of 38% from baseline (p < 0.01). The knowledge gained by physicians and nurses is an ongoing process evaluated by follow-up warfarin medication use evaluations and prospective weight-based heparin protocol evaluations. The goal of staff development should be to equip each member of the health care team with the knowledge needed to improve patient outcomes.

Pharmacy Student Involvement in Student Organizations

ABSTRACTThe purpose of this study was to describe the types of organizations pharmacy students are involved in and students' level of involvement. Responses were obtained from 351 pharmacy students representing eight U.S. colleges of pharmacy. On average, students were involved in 1.69 organizations (SD = 1.54, range 0 to 9, median = 1). Only 23% of students (n = 81) were not involved in an organization during the 1995–96 school year and over two-thirds of students were involved in one to three organizations. Of the organizations students were most involved with (up to a maximum of three evaluated), 87% of memberships held were in pharmacy organizations, 9% in campus organizations, and 4% in other organizations. Students were most involved in national pharmacy organizations (e.g., APhA-ASP, ASHP, and NARD) and pharmacy fraternities (43% and 24%, respectively). ANCOVA results indicate that the number of organizations students are involved in differs by year of graduation, with those two years away from gra...

Strategy to effect change in pharmacy practice

The formulation of a strategy for change in pharmacy practice is described. Pharmacy has focused more on improving efficiency for existing functions than on identifying and adapting to the changing needs of society. The survival of the profession will depend on its ability to meet the present and future needs of society. Structural and procedural aspects of strategy formulation should focus on building a consensus within the profession. Interests of professional leaders, educators, practitioners, and the public should be incorporated into the profession's strategy. A center for strategic planning, supported by national pharmacy organizations, is suggested. Formulation of a strategy for pharmacy should involve: (1) an assessment of health-care needs relevant to pharmacy; (2) comparative evaluations of methods for delivering needed services; (3) integration with other health-care services; (4) organization and management of pharmacy practice; (5) financing considerations; and (6) legislative and regulatory changes. Planned strategic change will provide pharmacy with a mechanism for channeling its future activity in a direction that can effectively and efficiently meet the needs of society.

Eroding the Physician's Control of Therapy

For several years, those associated with the profession of pharmacy have become increasingly aware that the graduating pharmacist is overtrained for the usual duties he performs in the drugstore or hospital pharmacy. This development has resulted from a variety of influences, among which are an extra year of study for the Bachelor of Science degree, more sophisticated and technical classes in the pharmacy curriculum, and increased efforts by drug manufacturers to improve the ease of drug dispensing, which practically eliminates the compounding of prescriptions. Both local and national pharmacy organizations, recognizing the problem, have proposed new roles for the pharmacist in an effort to make better utilization of his considerable knowledge. One such proposal adopted by the American Pharmaceutical Association (APhA) was presented to organized medicine in the form of a white paper entitled<i>The Pharmacist's Role In Product Selection</i>. This paper contains the premise that the pharmacist is best