Recent Times article about pharmacist prescibing

[Raju]

What do you all think of this article? I think it is OK but still buts a bit of a stigma on us pharmacists who want to expand our roles. Make sure you leave comments at the bottom if you have anything to say, as some medics are slagging us off undercover:

The deputy doctors-Life & Style-Women-Body & Soul-TimesOnline

[admin]

Re: Recent Times article about pharmacist prescibing

What do you all think of this article? I think it is OK but still buts a bit of a stigma on us pharmacists who want to expand our roles. Make sure you leave comments at the bottom if you have anything to say, as some medics are slagging us off undercover:

The deputy doctors-Life & Style-Women-Body & Soul-TimesOnline

On the whole I think the article is ok, and quite well written. A big problem is that the public simple have no idea of the training each member of the health care team have. This is a primary example: -

Pharmacists do know lots about drugs, but they don't have the training to diagnose medical conditions. How can they prescribe antibiotics if they have had no training in microbiology? It is all very well altering asthma drugs, but they don't have the training to take a step back and ask themselves if this is just asthma or if the patient has another problem as well - knowing lots about one condition doesn't help to pick up another.

The assumption made is of course that we simply do not even study microbiology - utter rubbish. Where did this reader get her "facts" from? Does she just assume this, or has someone actually told her? I remember doing five lectures a week, plus a weekly practical for a full year in microbioogy.

She also makes false assumptions about our asthma training. How many of us have seen scripts for plenty of B2 agonists (inhaled as well as oral) yet no sign of inhaled steroids? How many GP's simply ignore the British Thorasic Society's guidelines?

I wonder what this person believes is the training of an average nurse?

Until we educate the public, I believe we won't win their confidence on this one. I also wonder if GP's are a little afraid we might do a better job of prescribing then they do. We still have 2000 deaths a year from asthma, around a 3rd of all geriatric admissions to hospitals are due to incorrect prescribing and we all know the massive waste that is drained from the NHS via poor prescribing habits.

When I worked in a hospital, the geriatrician told me that a 3rd of his patients admitted with Parkinsons disease didn't actually have it!

A good link though, and an interesting read.

Thanks

[Jeff]

Re: Recent Times article about pharmacist prescibing

It is all very well altering asthma drugs, but they don't have the training to take a step back and ask themselves if this is just asthma or if the patient has another problem as well - knowing lots about one condition doesn't help to pick up another.

A strong element of truth in the last bit though - we do not have the diagnostic training to pick up on co-morbidities.

Jeff

[admin]

Re: Recent Times article about pharmacist prescibing

A strong element of truth in the last bit though - we do not have the diagnostic training to pick up on co-morbidities.

Jeff

Ok fair enough, but we aren't diagnosing disease are we? If a person has worsening asthma symptoms, or an acute episode, don't GP's prescribe an oral course of steroids? If that doesn't work then they will refer won't they? What would you do differenty?

My GP's surgery has a nurse that runs an asthma clinic, and she prescribes for the patients. Do you think she has more drug knowledge then us? What about medical knowledge too?

Why don't we all reply to the article and start something going!

[Raju]

Re: Recent Times article about pharmacist prescibing

A strong element of truth in the last bit though - we do not have the diagnostic training to pick up on co-morbidities.

Jeff

that is weak. any pharmacist running an asthma clinic would be doing CPD and keep up to date in that particular field of knowledge and be cautious about what they do. Plus, the pharmacist won't be the sole source of treatment for these asthma patients. If nurses are OK doing clinics, as they have been doing for a long time know, then why shouldn't pharmacists tweak and fine tune medication?

[Jeff]

Re: Recent Times article about pharmacist prescibing

that is weak. any pharmacist running an asthma clinic would be doing CPD and keep up to date in that particular field of knowledge and be cautious about what they do.

Another disease - not asthma - but affecting the asthma - doctors have a broader knowledge of multiple disease states.

Plus, the pharmacist won't be the sole source of treatment for these asthma patients.

Agreed.

If nurses are OK doing clinics, as they have been doing for a long time know, then why shouldn't pharmacists tweak and fine tune medication?

See recent comments on PrivateRx about Nurse run pain clinics.
I know little of nurse training or their clinical experience - so no further comment.
I'm not arguing that pharmacists would be better than or worse than anyone else. Just that we would be different from.
With our broader knowledge of drugs we bring something extra to the pot, with our restricted knowledge of diseases we have our own limitations.

Jeff

[Steve G]

Re: Recent Times article about pharmacist prescibing

I would expect the training for someone to conduct an asthma clinic would cover alternative causes of symptoms, such as heart failure or COPD. And we are used to dealing with symptoms that may be due to several disease states. Heartburn may be due to reflux, ulcers, cancer, medication or even angina, yet we manage patients presenting with heartburn every day.

[kemzero]

Re: Recent Times article about pharmacist prescibing

The writer is obviously devoid of a few facts ....did microbiology for a full semester or maybe year.. AS for the management of asthma patients...she shouldn't really go there, some GPs haven't even heard of the BTS guidelines let alone implement them.