Five Things You Might Not Know About Your Pharmacist and/or Pharmacy

At UIC Pharmacy we want to keep you informed. What you do not know about your pharmacist or pharmacy could have a negative impact on your health. It is well known that pharmacists are one of the most trusted health care professionals in the United States; however, there are many misconceptions regarding the role of the pharmacist and the operations of the pharmacy.¹ In this post, we will discuss 5 things you might not know about your pharmacist and/or pharmacy that could help optimize your health care.

1.     Pharmacists are the drug experts, utilize their expertise!

·       In a survey conducted by the American Pharmacists Association (APhA), only 40% of patients utilized pharmacists as a source for information on health care needs.² It is important to keep in mind that pharmacists are easily accessible and they are trained to counsel patients on medication utilization and safety.

2.     Get to know your pharmacist by name.

Pharmacists can help optimize your health

 ·       Developing a patient-provider relationship with your pharmacist can have a bigger impact on your health care than you think.  In a survey by APhA, 77% of patients do not know their pharmacist by name.³ Those who knew their pharmacist’s name were more likely to talk to their pharmacist about other drugs they were taking, consult the pharmacist about prescription and over-the-counter (OTC) medications, know the active drug in their medications, and read product labels.  It is also recommended that you use the same pharmacy to fill all your prescriptions so that the pharmacist can have an accurate history of your current and past medications to check for drug interactions.⁴ These are small steps you can take to increase medication safety and improve health outcomes.

 3.     Pharmacy drive-throughs are convenient, but they are also potentially dangerous.

 ·       Pharmacy drive-throughs can help stream-line medication dispensing, but you are picking up your medicines, not fast food.⁵ In a study on the impact of pharmacy design and layout, surveyed pharmacists working in locations with drive-throughs generally agreed that drive-throughs create distractions that can decrease efficiency and increase dispensing errors.⁶ Consumers using the drive-through pharmacy service trade face-to-face interaction with a health care provider for convenience.  This interaction is necessary for proper patient counseling.

4.     Why does placing pills in a bottle take at least 15 minutes?

 ·       Filling a prescription correctly is not as easy as it seems.  There are many steps involved in processing a prescription to ensure that you are getting the right medication, and that this medication will be safe and effective.⁷ When a prescription is received at the pharmacy, it must be entered into the computer system, submitted to the insurance company for payment, filled, and correctly verified.  During this process, the pharmacist will check for drug interactions, allergies, and make sure this medicine is prescribed for the correct reason and at the correct dose.  Keep in mind that all of this occurs in the midst of phone calls, faxes, patient counseling, and other customers filling or picking up their medications as well.  A study by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality showed that pharmacists played the largest role in preventing medication errors from reaching the patient.⁸ In this study, interventions by pharmacists accounted for 40% of errors prevented, while 19% and 17% were caught by physicians and patients, respectively.

 5.     Your pharmacy is not just for filling your prescriptions.

 ·       Many pharmacies are now offering clinical services in addition to dispensing medications.  These services include immunizations, disease state management programs, health screenings, and medication therapy management.⁹ There have been many studies done on the implementation of disease state management programs in community pharmacies.^10,11 These studies have shown that pharmacists have a positive impact on the management of chronic disease states such as diabetes and high cholesterol.  These programs resulted in improved patient self-care and increased knowledge of disease states.

Now that you know more about your pharmacist and pharmacy, speak to your pharmacist about how to improve your therapy and health in general.  The Institute of Medicine recommends that patients take an active role in their health care to prevent complications associated with medications.¹² Your pharmacist is there to help you!

 References

 1.     Schweers, K. Pharmacists score big in gallup poll-again. The Dose. http://ncpanet.wordpress.com/2009/12/10/pharmacists-score-big-in-gallup-poll-%E2%80%93-again/. Published December 10, 2009. Accessed August 11, 2011.

2.     American Pharmacists Association. Survey reveals most customers do not carry a medication list. http://www.pharmacist.com/AM/Template.cfm?Section=News_Releases2&Template=/CM/ContentDisplay.cfm&ContentID=21152. Published October 1, 2009. Accessed August 11, 2011.

 3.     Consumermedsafety.org. Know your pharmacist…know your medicine.  http://www.consumermedsafety.org/article.asp?id=66. Published January 2006. Accessed August 11, 2011.

4.     MedlinePlus. Getting a prescription filled.  http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/001956.htm. Updated August 2, 2011. Accessed August 11, 2011.

5.     Abcnews.com. Experts: consumers can protect themselves against pharmacy errors.  http://blogs.abcnews.com/theblotter/2007/04/experts_consume.html. Published April 2, 2011. Accessed August 11, 2011.

 6.     Caldwel E. Survey suggests pharmacies’ drive-through dispensing puts public at risk. Medical News Today. http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/94865.php. Published January 23, 2008. Accessed August 11, 2011.

 7.     Schneider, M. Waiting in the pharmacy:  when patients don’t have patience. Consumer Health Information Corporation. http://www.consumer-health.com/services/WaitinginthePharmacyWhenPatientsDontHavePatience.php. Published 2008. Accessed August 11, 2011.

8.     Sweeny JF. Study:  pharmacists most likely to catch medication errors. Modern Medicine.  http://www.modernmedicine.com/modernmedicine/Clinical+News/Study-Pharmacists-most-likely-to-catch-medication-/ArticleStandard/Article/detail/585783. Published March 9, 2009. Accessed August 11, 2011.

 9.     American Pharmacists Association. You and your pharmacist partners in managing medications. http://www.pharmacist.com/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Consumers1. Updated 2011. Accessed August 11, 2011.

 10.  Mehuys E, Van Bortel L, De Bolle L, et al. Effectiveness of a community pharmacist intervention in diabetes care: a randomized controlled trial. J Clin Pharm Ther. 2010; doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2710.2010.01218.x.

 11.  Yamada C, Johnson JA, Robertson P, Pearson G, Tsuyuki RT. Long-term impact of a community pharmacist intervention on cholesterol levels in patients at high risk for cardiovascular events: extended follow-up of the second study of cardiovascular risk intervention by pharmacists (SCRIP-plus). Pharmacotherapy. 2005;25(1):110-115.

 12.  American Pharmacists Association. Pharmacists providing medication-related care in all patient care settings, improving medication use and enhancing patients’ lives. http://www.pharmacist.com/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Insurers_Benefits&Template=/TaggedPage/TaggedPageDisplay.cfm&TPLID=135&ContentID=22584. Updated 2011. Accessed August 11, 2011.

By: Lilly Nguyen, PharmD Candidate 2012

Ovarian Cancer Symptoms, Diagnosis and Treatment.

What is Ovarian Cancer?

At UIC Pharmacy, we want to keep you informed, September is Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month, so this is a great time to learn about ovarian cancer.  Ovarian tumors can be benign (noncancerous) or malignant (cancerous).  Ovarian cancer is defined as a growth of abnormal malignant cells that begins in the ovaries, the part of the female reproductive tract where eggs are produced.   Noncancerous cells do not spread to other parts of the body (metastasize); however, malignant cells can metastasize throughout the body.

Lifetime risk of developing ovarian cancer in a women with no affected relatives is 1 in 70 or 1.4%.  If a first degree relative has ovarian cancer, a woman’s lifetime risk rises to 5%.  Post-menopausal women are more likely to be diagnosed with the disease than younger women, with a median age at diagnosis of 63 years.

Risk factors for developing ovarian cancer include:

●      Mutations in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes.

●      A family history of breast or ovarian cancer.

●      Advanced age (over 55 years).

●      Never having a baby.

Common Symptoms

It is important for all women to be familiar with the symptoms of ovarian cancer, since early detection improves survival.  There is no definitive screening test for ovarian cancer and signs and symptoms are often silent or vague, making early detection difficult.  Therefore, women should not hesitate to talk to their doctor if they have any of the most common symptoms.

See a physician if you have the following symptoms daily for a few weeks:

●      Bloating.

●      Pelvic or abdominal pain.

●      Difficulty eating or feeling full quickly.

Other common symptoms of ovarian cancer are non-specific and may be seen with other conditions:

●      Feeling the need to urinate, or urinating often.

●      Pain with sexual intercourse.

●      Digestive problems such as nausea, vomiting, and constipation.

Diagnosis and Treatment

Diagnosis of ovarian cancer is made only through biopsy of ovarian tissue, which is when a doctor uses a large needle to take out a small piece of the ovary.  Women with symptoms of ovarian cancer who have additional risk factors can have further tests performed to determine if a biopsy is needed.  Examples of these other tests include:

●      Pelvic exam:  a doctor uses his or her hands to check the size and shape of the ovaries.

●      Ultrasonography:  viewing a picture of the ovary to detect changes that could indicate ovarian cancer.

●      Blood test:  looks for a protein called CA-125 that is found in ovarian cancer cells. This test is not always accurate on its own, but the results can be considered in combination with other test results and symptoms.

   

Current treatment of ovarian cancer includes surgical removal of the cancer followed by medications to destroy the remaining cancer cells (chemotherapy).  Most women require surgery that includes a hysterectomy (removal of the uterus [the womb]) and a salpingo-oophorectomy (removal of ovaries and fallopian tubes, the tubes connecting the ovaries and uterus).

Protecting Yourself

There are some things you can do to minimize your risk for developing ovarian cancer.

●      A diet rich in fruits and vegetables may help protect against ovarian cancer.

●      Having a regular pelvic exam from your doctor may help with early detection of ovarian cancer.  To help with early detection, women at high risk may also undergo some of the other tests used to diagnose ovarian cancer.

●      Taking birth control pills for 5 years may reduce ovarian cancer risk.

●      Having a baby and breastfeeding may reduce risk of ovarian cancer.

●      Having surgery to close or tie off the fallopian tubes may reduce the chances of developing ovarian cancer.  After this procedure it is no longer possible to become pregnant so it is not often done in younger patients.

Seventy percent of patients with ovarian cancer are first diagnosed when the disease has already spread from the ovaries to other parts of the body.  When ovarian cancer has spread it is much harder to treat.  Early detection of ovarian cancer improves survival,  so it is important to be attentive to the symptoms described above, understand your risk factors, and talk about any of your concerns with your healthcare providers.

 

Interested in learning more?

The following websites are good resources for finding out more about ovarian cancer.

●      National Ovarian Council Coalition - http://www.ovarian.org/

●      National Library of Medicine - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ovariancancer.html

●      PubMed Health - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001891/

You can also stop one of the UIC Pharmacy locations and consult your UIC Pharmacist.

Jamie Wrenn

Doctor of Pharmacy Candidate 2013

UIC College of Pharmacy