The role of pharmacists in the evolution of health care: an open forum discussion.
The pharmacy profession should be actively involved in the development of guidelines and protocols for various disease states. Good research to demonstrate that interventions by pharmacists result in good clinical outcomes and money saved is scarce. Pharmacy is in the early throes of change as a result of growth within the profession. In the future, pharmacists will be more involved in clinical evaluations and less with drug dispensing duties because of advances in automation. The new Medicare Part D program is a real opportunity for pharmacists to be actively engaged in patient education and treatment monitoring.
Kelly
H William
HW
Department of Pediatricsrmacy, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87131, USA. hwkelly@unm.edu
D003695:Delivery of Health Care / Q000639:trends; D006801:Humans; D007356:Insurance, Pharmaceutical Services; D006278:Medicare; D005791:Patient Care / Q000639:trends*; D010593:Pharmaceutical Services / Q000639:trends*; D010595:Pharmacists / Q000639:trends