October is American Pharmacists Month. The theme of this observance, “Know Your Medicine—Know Your Pharmacist” is quite timely as more Americans’ acute and chronic health condition are being addressed via medication therapy. Consumers with questions about their medications don’t have to worry about where to get information. Pharmacists are their best and most accessible medication experts.

A dialogue between the patient and pharmacist about prescription and nonprescription medicines helps achieve maximum health benefits and avoid harmful side effects. This helps patients know their medicine.

Your pharmacist knows about interactions with food, medicines, or dietary supplements that can effect how medicines work. Some interactions can be dangerous. When picking up a new medicine, ask if it will work safely with other prescription and nonprescription medicines you may be taking. Tell your pharmacist about any herbal products that you may be using, as well.

Following the pharmacist’s advice can also save money for consumers and help lower the nation’s health care bill by ensuring proper medication use. Not following a medicine’s instructions or discontinuing its use without consulting with your health care provider can lead to more expensive treatment, even surgery or hospitalization.“When the patient keeps the pharmacist up-to-date on all prescription and nonprescription medications being taken and asks important questions, the pharmacist can monitor the patient’s treatment and help reach a healthy result,” said Tom Hodel of Soldotna Professional Pharmacy.

“With the array of complex and effective medications now available, it's more important than ever that Americans know their pharmacist is there to help them improve their medication use,” said Dan Herbert, President of the American Pharmacists Association, “Patients can help manage their own care by reading the label, knowing the active ingredient in their medications, and if they have questions, asking their pharmacist. Their pharmacist also can help them understand how to best store medications in the home and what medications they should have on hand. Their pharmacist will be glad to advise on what to do after a medication reaches its expiration date, as well as to make recommendations on proper disposal of expired medications.”

“The pharmacist is no longer simply a dispenser of drugs, and the pharmacy itself has become a health care center,” said Hodel, “Pharmacists are actively changing their practices to meet the challenges of the health care system and their patient needs and demands.”

APhA says that consumers should expect a higher level of service from today’s pharmacists. Consumers should look to their pharmacist to provide medication-counseling services, including drug regimen reviews and drug interaction checks, coordination of patient care with physicians and other health are providers, and monitoring of side effects. Some pharmacists can also perform limited patient testing, such as cholesterol screening, glucose monitoring and blood pressure checks.

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Soldotna Professional Pharmacy

299 N. Binkley St.

Soldotna, AK

262-3800