Future Challenges to Pharmacists

[kata]

Hi there,

I am trying to finish up my supp app and I was wondering whether anyone can help me with one of the questions. "What are some future challenges to pharmacists and how you plan to overcome these challenges?" The only think I could think of was the insurane issue, but what can I do to overcome that. Thanks in advance.

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[OoShimmeroO]

for some reason, i hate this question

 

[Caverject]

Hi there,

I am trying to finish up my supp app and I was wondering whether anyone can help me with one of the questions. "What are some future challenges to pharmacists and how you plan to overcome these challenges?" The only think I could think of was the insurane issue, but what can I do to overcome that. Thanks in advance.

Kata,

Not to be mean, but that really is a stupid issue to put on an application. You may not like dealing with it in retail pharmacy, but it is a simple fact of life. Now what you can say is that you want to work for an HMO company or the government which is pretty wide ranging in therapeutic selection. All together though, I think it is a weak topic.

A better challenge would be to talk about the new medicare act that gives prescription drug coverage. It is also worthy to note that pharmacists will be paid for cognitive services for the very first time. This is a HUGE buzz word amongst pharmacists today. Just a thought! Goodluck

 

[bananaface]

Something to keep in mind is that you should avoid speaking negatively of patients at all points in the interview process. So, nowhere in your essay or interview should you characterize patients as a challenge to overcome.

 

[kata]

Thank you for all your help.

 

[ku06]

I believe that in the healthcare field that unless you do something very hands on you need to watch for changing tides against your job. How hard would it be for everything you learn to be integrated into an easy to use computer system that scans the barcode on a prescription and dispenses the drug while checking dosages and interactions. I believe that this would be VERY easy to do and it would cut the pharmacy profession at least in half. You will always need compounded drugs and hospital pharmicists though, so the more trained will not be sucking for air. This may not happen because of political reasons, but what I do see happening for sure is Pharms being placed in an "adminstrative" role over 5 pharm techs. This would lower the amount of pharms needed and cut costs.

 

[J Lucas]

I believe that in the healthcare field that unless you do something very hands on you need to watch for changing tides against your job. How hard would it be for everything you learn to be integrated into an easy to use computer system that scans the barcode on a prescription and dispenses the drug while checking dosages and interactions. I believe that this would be VERY easy to do and it would cut the pharmacy profession at least in half. You will always need compounded drugs and hospital pharmicists though, so the more trained will not be sucking for air. This may not happen because of political reasons, but what I do see happening for sure is Pharms being placed in an "adminstrative" role over 5 pharm techs. This would lower the amount of pharms needed and cut costs.

Your post's make me so MAD . Thats the second time you have postulated your theory on the ease of replacing Pharmacist with computers. That is very disrespectful to go around spouting off that someones profession or future profession in which they dedicated a large portion of their lives in school ; is going to be imminently replaced by a computer. The first time you posted it, you asked if it could be done and how easy it would be. Now all of a sudden, its "VERY easy" to do. Are you some sort of computer engineer major with a minor in job elimination? Or do you have the inside scoop on the end of the Pharmacist profession? Please let me know.

 

[bananaface]

Some people do actually see increased automation as an issue that pharmacists will face in the future. Personally, I see automation as more likely to decrease the need for non-discretionary tasks, which are often handled by technicians. With the increasing scope of practice, the baby boomers aging, and direct to consumer advertising, I don't see the number of pharmacists needed would be going down anytime soon. Plus, many types of automation, such as counting machines, are only economical for large scale operations.

There are alot of legislative issues pending that could be talked about in an admissions essay.

 

[kata]

bananaface,

Can you please tell me where I would be able to find "a lot of legislative issues pending" that I can talk about in my addmission essay? Or may an example of one or two so I can look them up on google. Thank you.

 

[bananaface]

http://www.aphanet.org/students/policy/policy_book.doc

This has lots of ideas, beyond just legislative issues. It looks big, but you can scan through it pretty easily.

 

[kata]

Thank you for all your help.

 

[berrytart]

Hi, I've been hearing a lot about the new medicare act that gives money for prescriptions but is not too familiar with its details. And what is this issue about scanning bar codes on prescriptions? Can someone please elaborate on the plans and its positives and negatives?? Thanks!!!

alice =)

 

[dgroulx]

Hi, I've been hearing a lot about the new medicare act that gives money for prescriptions but is not too familiar with its details. And what is this issue about scanning bar codes on prescriptions? Can someone please elaborate on the plans and its positives and negatives?? Thanks!!!

alice =)

You can find out about medicare by going to www.medicare.gov. It explains everything in simple terms.

Bar codes have been used for a while in hospital settings. I haven't seen them used in retail, but I don't live in a big city. By using bar codes in a hospital, it ensures that the right patient is getting the correct medication. A lot of hospital errors are due to administration of drugs. Many drug names are similar and the bar coding helps alleviate those errors. By scanning the drug, the patient's chart and the bar code on the patients wrist band, it helps prevent those errors.

 

[bananaface]

I work retail and my store uses bar codes. When I worked at the hospital, they didn't. I guess it just depends on the individual pharmacy.

 

[berrytart]

Kata,

Not to be mean, but that really is a stupid issue to put on an application. You may not like dealing with it in retail pharmacy, but it is a simple fact of life. Now what you can say is that you want to work for an HMO company or the government which is pretty wide ranging in therapeutic selection. All together though, I think it is a weak topic.

A better challenge would be to talk about the new medicare act that gives prescription drug coverage. It is also worthy to note that pharmacists will be paid for cognitive services for the very first time. This is a HUGE buzz word amongst pharmacists today. Just a thought! Goodluck

Wat do you mean by "cognitive services?" and how is the medicare act a challenge to future pharmacists?

 

[Caverject]

Wat do you mean by "cognitive services?" and how is the medicare act a challenge to future pharmacists?

"Wat" I mean is that we will be able to bill medicare for counseling services, like sitting down with a patient for 30 minutes to explain how to use a diabetic meter or do a brown bag deal where they bring in all their meds and we will review all the drugs with the patient. etc

The medicare act is a challenge for pharmacists because no one really knows how the new drug program will be run and what it will mean to pharmacies. So far, it's been a big money loser for retail pharmacy because the "discount" cards are just cards that take the profit away from pharmacy. The other challenge is implementing the new rules of medicare.

 

[berrytart]

"Wat" I mean is that we will be able to bill medicare for counseling services, like sitting down with a patient for 30 minutes to explain how to use a diabetic meter or do a brown bag deal where they bring in all their meds and we will review all the drugs with the patient. etc

The medicare act is a challenge for pharmacists because no one really knows how the new drug program will be run and what it will mean to pharmacies. So far, it's been a big money loser for retail pharmacy because the "discount" cards are just cards that take the profit away from pharmacy. The other challenge is implementing the new rules of medicare.

Thanks that was really helpful!