if you have been to a hospital, nursing home, or even a community pharmacy you will see that pharmacist do much more intangibles than a mail order/internet pharmacy or canadian pharmacy can do.
if you read the definition of pharmaceutical care, what pharmacists are primarily concerned with these days, you will note that pharmacists provide a level of care that others cannot. (you can find the defintion on the aacp.org ). they are the ones that consult their patients on a face-to-face level about issues like compliance, interactions and so on. medications are changing everyday and pharmacists are the ones trained and capable of stepping up to that plate. they are the ones doctors call for dosing info, titration info... the list goes on and on (my husband is a neurosurgical resident and always calls the pharmacist at his hospital for questions). clincal pharmacy is expanding in every which way. i have heard a few states now allow their pharmacists to be the ones writing a prescription for certain classes of drugs. additionally, a pharmacist i know does coumadin therapy and she monitors everyday how the body is reacting and recalculates their dosing based upon things like how much brocolli they ate... (brocolli has a negating effect on coumadin).
anyways, the field of pharmacy is extremely young... it is changing everyday and the oppty's in the field are SO numerous. think of the oppyt's with pharmacogenomics... what the pharmacists can do there is absolutely amazing!! it is changing, but currently there is a common misconception of the pharmacist job def. the pharmacist of tomorrow (and today!) doesn't just count pills and put stickers on, roles that internet/mail order/foreign far off pharmacies can fullfill.
the pharmacist plays a a very vital role in the healthcare team!! There is a ton of info out there on this!!
hint: to all pre-pharm ppl, do some research before you write you personal statement- they will see the difference.
