| Description |
A review of drug therapy reveals a prevalence of adverse drug reactions, noncompliance, and improper utilization of prescription medications. To address these problems, insurance executives, pharmacy educators, and the United States federal government call for pharmacy practice to become service oriented. Research indicates clinical pharmacy services is an cost-effective way to address and solve medication problems. Therefore, pharmacy practice must address these problems by implementing pharmaceutical care. Pharmaceutical care is responsible provision of drug therapy for the purpose of achieving definite outcomes that can improve a patient's quality of life. The therapeutic outcomes are cure of disease, reduction or elimination of symptoms, arresting or slowing of a disease process and preventing a disease or symptoms. Analysis of attitudes of consumers, physicians and pharmacists toward clinical pharmacy services reveal positive support for the expanded role of pharmacists. Even with the attitudinal support there are many barriers against implementing pharmaceutical care. These barriers are organizations, economic and reimbursement issues, logistics, and pharmacist training. To overcome these barriers and implement pharmaceutical care, a model for patient monitoring in community pharmacy is set forth. Requirements for the model are a knowledge of the criteria for provision of comprehensive drug therapy, the five-step approach to patient care, and the steps required to implement clinical pharmacy services. Pharmacist cognizance of the criteria can then apply the model for patient monitoring in community pharmacy. The model consists of taking patient histories, dispensing prescription medications, counseling patients and monitoring patients. Through this model pharmacists can expand their role to reach the mandate of pharmaceutical care, which is responsible provision of drug therapy for the purpose of achieving definite outcomes that improve a patient's quality of life. |
