[Health assessment of local residents who made full use of symptomatology skills and test device].
A strategy named "Japan is back" adopted in June 2013 specifies that pharmacies shall be regarded as community-based places where health-related information is provided, and the public shall be encouraged to use the services of pharmacies and pharmacists who can advise on health and appropriate use of over-the-counter (OTC) drugs, and promote self medication. In Japan there are approximately 55000 pharmacies and 260000 pharmacists, and community residents are recommended to use these resources. As advisors on healthcare in the community, pharmacists are required to make judgments regarding drug use in individuals performing self medication and using OTC drugs in consideration of their symptoms and level of understanding of their health conditions, and recommend that they consult a medical center if necessary. To meet these requirements pharmacists need to have the skills to monitor each individual's lifestyle, behavior, and environment as well as trends in society, and assess their health status. However, education that allows pharmacists to practice such skills remains insufficiently developed. We consider that to be able to detect diseases early among community residents and appropriately support them using pharmacotherapy, it is very important to train pharmacists to do the following at pharmacies: 1) determine individuals who should be treated early using symptomatologic skills; 2) promote public awareness of disease; and 3) perform biochemical examination (blood is collected by fingerprick promptly to obtain biochemical data) in cooperation with the Department of Clinical Pharmacotherapy, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Hiroshima University.
Drug39 CO., LTD.
Shinichiro
S
Akagawa
Norifumi
N
Morikawa
Kayo
K
Ikeda
Teruo
T
Okazaki
Shunsuke
S
Takahashi
D019058:Community Networks; D003157:Community Pharmacy Services; D004513:Education, Pharmacy, Continuing; D006801:Humans; D020380:Needs Assessment; D010361:Patients