Pharmacy may not wear a little black dress or have six-pack abs that Hercules would be jealous of, but believe it or not Pharmacy is sexy. Maybe you don’t see it as you stand in line at CVS along with three of your closest friends waiting for the pharmacist to take your prescription, fill the bottle and hand it over–in fact I’d bet that at some point you wonder why it takes so long. It’s because it’s sexy, that’s why.
While no TV show has ever aired focusing on a intelligent but controlling Pharmacist and his Techs in a comedic way, a la Scrubs, or became a day time, drama filled, soap opera circa 1994’s ER (“Get me the atorvastatin stat! No, not the Lipitor, they can’t afford it! What are you trying to do man, bankrupt the patient?!”). Pharmacy has it’s fingers in almost every part of your medical treatment. After all what is the point of seeing the doctor for your bronchitis if you can’t treat it afterwards? The Doc gives you a pat on the back and sends you out the door to face the world? No! They write you a script so you fix the problem. But that’s not the end, problem solved.
First and foremost your pharmacist doesn’t just fill whatever piece of paper you pass over the counter. They check your records and make sure it won’t interact with any other medications you are on, make sure you aren’t susceptible to side effect conditions (i.e. if you have a weak heart they will recommend putting you on a medication that doesn’t have a known side effect of heart attacks), and that the medication prescribed will fix the underlying issue rather than just they symptom. Then they submit recommendations to the doctor if they believe there is a better medication out there. If everything is fine not only do the they fill the prescription, compounding it themselves if they have too, they check to make sure what is in the bottle is what you need, just in case. Finally when they hand that bottle over the counter to you they will help you understand not just why you are taking the medication, but how and when to take it.
Now imagine you are uninsured and have seen a half dozen doctors in the past year at different free clinics for your chronic and acute issues. You have a handful of scripts written, possibly without knowing what else you are on, at what dosage, and for what condition. Your local Pharmacist will be able to tell you interactions, and why you’re on them. Your pharmacist will teach you how to subcutaneously inject lovenox for stroke prevention correctly so the medicine works. Pharmacy saves lives. And that’s why pharmacy is sexy.