Opportunities and responsibilities for pharmacists on short-term medical mission teams.
BACKGROUND
American medical mission teams commonly travel to developing countries for short-term provision of clinical services. Although medications play an important role in the work of these teams, how to plan and organize a mission field pharmacy has been seldom described in the literature.


OBJECTIVE
To describe pharmacist participation in medical mission work.


CONCLUSIONS
Global standards and policies, as well as traditional best practices, should be applied to the selection, acquisition, use, and disposition of medications taken into a host country. This report describes the roles and responsibilities of pharmacists in planning and organizing a mission pharmacy and in delivering quality pharmacy services in the field.


CONCLUSIONS
Pharmacists have an important contribution to make to medical mission teams. Pharmacist knowledge of drug products, regulatory issues, medication storage, dispensing, patient consultation, therapeutic substitution, and pharmacy organization and workflow is ideally suited for mission field work.
Johnson
Curtis A
CA
Office of Global Health, School of Pharmacy, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53705, USA. cajohn-son@pharmacy.wisc.edu
Stieglitz
Nora
N
Schroeder
Mark E
ME
D006801:Humans; D008493:Medical Missions; D010595:Pharmacists; D024382:Professional Role