I am a Pharmacist, Your Health Partner.
Health is a right. But the sad truth is, healthcare has been turned largely into a business in our society today. It has become a privilege. We pharmacists can do something to reclaim our right to health.
I am a pharmacist. I am a drug expert. I am your health partner. Quality healthcare is achieved in many ways, one of which is the access to safe, good quality medicines and to complete and correct drug information. Drugs are no ordinary commodities. The medicines that we encounter daily are critical substances that when taken inappropriately can pose danger to our life. Drugs must be produced, stored and dispensed properly. It is necessary that the quality of drugs is established and preserved from the time it is manufactured until the patient take it for medication. We, pharmacists, play a crucial role in this entire process. Our purpose is to provide the best possible medication care you deserve. Like all health practitioners, our goal as pharmacists is to contribute in delivering maximum health care to our patients. We are members of the healthcare team, which comprises your doctors, nurses and other health professionals responsible for your health. In particular, our aim as drug experts is to ensure that through pharmacy practice, patients can optimize benefits from the use of drugs (medication). Our objective is the attainment of optimum health outcomes for our patients. We live by this principle through our active participation in a wide range of settings that involve drugs essential to healthcare. Successful health outcome is a collaborative effort from all the members of the team, including us, pharmacists. Pharmacists are essential in the determination of the most appropriate medication for the treatment or prevention of disease. When we say medication, we mean the proper dosage, storage, and administration of drugs to the patients. In the community, particularly in drugstores, drugs are dispensed as indicated in the prescription given by doctors. However, for optimum results in the use of drugs as part of the patient’s treatment, patients must have access to complete and correct drug information. Patients must also have guidance on the proper use and administration of drugs. All of these, we, pharmacists are in the best position to provide. We, pharmacists bridge the gap from the diagnosis of an illness to drug dispensation. There is always the probability of medication error, irrational drug use, and patient non-adherence. These three can lead to decreased patient recuperation and rehabilitation and to increased health care cost and subsequently, increased patient burden. Always remember that when you have questions or important matters to discuss regarding your medication, we are the right person to approach. Information about drugs is broad and complex and it is our role, as pharmacists, to relay this information in the simplest and most understandable way. Access to a pharmacist is access to quality medicines. It is access to quality healthcare. Remember that we are your companions throughout your healing process, towards a sound and healthier life. Pharmacists also play a key role in the development and manufacture of drugs. The extensive knowledge of pharmacists on drugs is immensely helpful in drug design. We determine the most appropriate mechanism by which a drug substance is introduced in the body. From there, we then ensure that drugs are produced properly from manufacturing, storage up until the distribution, with the ultimate goal that quality and safe medicines will reach our dear patients. Our desire to provide the people their right to health is also embodied in other areas of our practice. We continuously study and conduct research on drugs and develop innovations in drug therapy. Pharmacists are also involved in drafting of health policies and enabling health advocacies, in ensuring drug regulation and pharmacovigilance, and in providing pharmacy education to aspiring health professionals, all of which are centered on public health and patient well-being. We, pharmacists, are health practitioners essential to your access to quality health care, a right due to every one of us.### |
"We are members of the healthcare team, which comprises your doctors, nurses and other health professionals responsible for your health. In particular, our aim as drug experts is to ensure that through pharmacy practice, patients can optimize benefits from the use of drugs" "Access to a pharmacist is access to quality medicines. It is access to quality healthcare. Remember that we are your companions throughout your healing process, towards a sound and healthier life." "[Pharmacists] continuously study and conduct research on drugs and develop innovations in drug therapy. [We] are also involved in drafting of health policies and enabling health advocacies, in ensuring drug regulation and pharmacovigilance, and in providing pharmacy education to aspiring health professionals, all of which are centered on public health and patient well-being." |