EIGHT STAR PHARMACIST

EIGHT STAR PHARMACIST

 The concept of the “seven-star pharmacist” was introduced by WHO and adopted by FIP in 2000 in its policy statement on Good Pharmacy Education Practice to cover the roles of caregiver, decision-maker,communicator, manager, life-long learner, teacher and leader. The function of the pharmacist as a researcher has since been added and all these have been addressed in the competence standards.

1. Caregiver: 
Pharmacists must view their practice as integrated and continuous with those of the healthcare system and other health professionals.

2. Decision-maker: The appropriate, efficacious, safe and cost-effective use of resources (for example,personnel, medicines, chemicals, equipment, procedures, practices) should be the foundation of the pharmacist’swork. Achieving this goal requires the ability to evaluate, synthesise data and information and decide upon themost appropriate course of action.

3. Communicator: The pharmacist is in an ideal position to provide a link between prescriber and patient, and tocommunicate information on health and medicines to the public and other health professionals. Communication involves verbal, non-verbal, listening and writing skills.

4. Manager: Pharmacists must be able to manage resources (human, physical and financial) and information effectively; they must also be comfortable being managed by others, whether by an employer or the manager/leader of a healthcare team.

5. Life-long-learner: It is impossible to acquire in pharmacy school all the knowledge and experience needed topursue a life-long career as a pharmacist. The concepts, principles and commitment to life-long learning must begin while attending pharmacy school and must be supported throughout the pharmacist’s career. Pharmacists should learn how to keep their knowledge and skills up to date and how to put them into practice.

6. Teacher: Every pharmacist has a responsibility to assist with the education and training of future generations of pharmacists and the public. Participating as a teacher not only imparts knowledge to others, it offers an opportunity for the practitioner to gain new knowledge and to fine-tune existing skills.

7. Leader: Leadership involves compassion and empathy as well as vision and the ability to make decisions, communicate, and manage effectively. A pharmacist whose leadership role is to be recognised must have vision and the ability to lead.

8. Researcher: The pharmacist must be able to use the evidence base (e.g., scientific, pharmacy practice, healthsystem) effectively in order to advise on the rational use of medicines in the healthcare team. As a researcher,the pharmacist is able to increase the accessibility of unbiased health and medicines-related information for thepublic and other healthcare professionals.

Treatment for myocardial infarction

1. Oxygen — Used to maintain blood oxygenation as well as tissue and
cardiac O2 levels.

2. Aspirin — If administered when myocardial infarction is detected,
the antiplatelet properties of aspirin may reduce the overall size of
the infarction.

3. Thrombolytic therapy — If employed in the first 1 to 4 hours following
the onset of a myocardial infarction, these drugs may dissolve
clots in coronary blood vessels and re-establish blood flow.

4. Vasodilator drugs — Intravenous nitroglycerin can increase blood
flow to the myocardium and reduce myocardial work.

5.β-Blockers — Blunt the effect of catecholamine release on the myocardium,
reduce heart rate and myocardial work.

6. Pain management — Sublingual nitroglycerin, morphine if necessary

7. Antiarrhythmia drugs — To treat and prevent a number of potentially
life-threatening arrhythmias that might arise following a myocardialinfarction.

8. ACE inhibitors — Drugs that block activation of the renin–angiotensin
system and thus reduce the negative effects of vasoconstriction
and salt and water retention on the myocardium.

Types of Drug Information Questions

ADVERSE DRUG REACTIONS
Adverse reactions
Allergies
Teratogenicity
Toxicology

DOSING
Age-specific dosing
Dosing in patients with altered organ function (liver,
kidneys)
Indication-specific dosing

DRUG ADMINISTRATION
Commercial dosage form alterations (crushing, dissolving)
Drug administration methods
Product preparation (reconstitution, admixing,
compounding)
Compatibility, stability, and storage
Timing (with or without food or enteral products)

DRUG INTERACTIONS
Drug-disease interactions
Drug-drug interactions
Drug-food interactions
Drug–laboratory test interactions
Drug-nutrient interactions

INDICATIONS AND THERAPEUTIC USE
Approved drugs
Investigational drugs
Unapproved drugs

POISONINGS
Signs and symptoms
Treatment

PRODUCT-SPECIFIC CONCERNS
Constituents (sugars, dyes, adjuvants, alcohol)
Formulations
Identification
Storage

MISCELLANEOUS
Drug use during pregnancy and lactation
Pharmacoeconomics
Product-specific assays
Veterinary drug information

Drug Administration - Formulation

Formulation

Clinically useful drugs are formulated by drug
companies into preparations that can be administered
orally. intra\"enously. or by another route. The fonnu·
lation of a drug depends on the following factors:

-The barriers that the drug is capable of passing.
Intravenous drugs are injected directly into the blood
stream. In contrast, oTal preparations must pass
through the wall of the gastrointestinal tract and
blood vessel walls before entering the bloodstream.

-The setting in which the drug will be used. An
intravenous preparation might be appropriate for a
drug which is administered during surgery, but
would be inappropriate for home administration of
aspirin
.
-The urgency of the medical situation
. The delaybefore onset of action varies between preparations of
the same drug. Emergency situations often caU for
intravenous administration of agents which might
normaUy be administered by another route.

-Stability of the drug. Drugs which are denatured by
acid are not good candidates for oral preparations
because they may be destroyed in the stomach
(stomach pH = 2).

• First Pass Effect. 
Blood from the gastrointestinal tract passes 
through the liver before entering any other
organs. During this first pass through the liver, a
fraction of the drug (in some cases nearly all) can be
metabolized to an inactive or less active derivative.
The inactivation of some drugs is so great that the
agents are useless when administered orally.

FDA Approves New Prescription Acne Treatment

FDA  approved Galderma Laboratories’ antibiotic-free adapalene and benzoyl peroxide 0.3%/2.5% gel (Epiduo Forte Gel) for the once-daily treatment of acne vulgaris.

“Acne is a challenging condition to manage. It can vary greatly from patient to patient, can have a significant physical and psychosocial impact on sufferers, and patients can find treatment adherence difficult to maintain,” said clinical investigator Jonathan Weiss, MD, in a press release. “For many patients, rapid results are especially important, and some acne treatments take time to show effect. We were very excited to see in the clinical trial that people using Epiduo Forte Gel saw results as early as 1 week, with efficacy continually improving through week 12.”

The most commonly reported adverse events experienced by trial participants treated with Epiduo Forte Gel were skin irritation, eczema, atopic dermatitis, and skin burning sensation. Most of the side effects associated with the drug’s use were mild and moderate in severity, a finding that Galderma considers particularly relevant to acne patients with sensitive skin.

Galderma plans to launch Epiduo Forte Gel in early September 2015, according to a manufacturer press release.

10 Things to do during every interview.

Here is a list of ten things I tell my clients before they go into an interview to do. If these are done correctly the chances of success go up dramatically.

1) Dress properly-This maybe a no brainer but there are some out there who do not wear a suit to an interview. The guideline usually is to dress as if you are going to church or court which ever you're more comfortable with. Just Because the interviewer or organization is casual, does not mean we can be.

2) Always Smile and make eye contact- When you first meet the interviewer extend your hand and make eye contact. Introduce yourself and listen for their name so that you can use it at the end the interview to thank them for taking the time to interview you.

3) Bring 2 copies of your resume- This is important that you bring a good clean copy of your resume with you on resume paper. I say bring two because usually the director is going to need to pass your resume on to his Hr department and we want him to have one as well.

4)Stay away from money- It is improper to discuss money at the first interview. If they ask you about money it is ok to say your negotiable. Money is always the last thing to discuss even if it is the first thing on your mind.

5) Do your research- This is important, you want the potential employer to know you have looked into them and it will tell you what their recent success have been and where they are going as an organization.

6)Always ask questions- The only way to hear what you want to hear is to ask questions. The questions should revolve around duties and the company. Some questions should also revolve around the research you have done prepare some questions about things you have seen on the organizations website.

7)Always speak good of the past- Never criticize a current or former employer. Your potential boss would not want you to go around bad mouthing him if you leave his organization.

8)Mentally prepare yourself- You do want to walk into an interview with an air of confidence, in your mind you should already know that you have done the research and have good questions prepared, the only thing standing in your way is the attitude you present to your interviewer. Always make sure you are enthusiastic about the opportunity and convey that to them.

9)Know somebody- Always have references available to provide to your potential employer.

10)Exit with a smile- At the end of the interview shake your potential employers hand and thank him again for taking the time to interview you and reiterate how much you are interested in the position. I always say to follow up with a thank you note it is always best.

How Innovation Differs from Invention

Invention   

This is usually defined as the discovery of a new item. Whether it is a new drug, device, or other piece of technology, it is unique and no similar one exists. Unfortunately, most invention comes from outside of the profession, with individuals using their skills to bring inventions to pharmacy practice. The invention should result in a patent submission because of its novelty and lack of prior art. 

Innovation 

This term usually comes after the invention has occurred. This can either be an improvement on a current system or a process that makes things better than their current state. Innovation could also involve taking an existing idea that was implemented at 1 site and replicating it at another. Because anything unique is often considered innovative. They are improvements of an existing service, as opposed to the creation of new technology.

 Entrepreneurship 

This term applies when someone takes a novel idea and creates a new business from it. The entrepreneur is usually the founder who gets an equity stake in the start-up company. 
The company could be based on an invention or innovation, but it has to have a commercial base to support it. Those who start and own an independent pharmacy would be considered entrepreneurs. Starting and running a business requires very different skills than inventing and innovating. 
Some might choose to turn their invention into a business, while others might allow someone else to use their invention to start a company.