Pharmacy schools offer collaboratives courses
Nova Southeastern University College of Pharmacy in Ft. Lauderdale, FL, has begun a 32-hour physical assessment course that’s a good example of the steps academia is taking to prepare pharmacists for a greater role in prescribing and diagnosing. The course, 16 hours of lecture and 16 hours of practical application, is run by doctors and pharmacists at the school, says Carsten Evans, MS, PhD, assistant dean and associate professor of pharmacy administration. It’s offered postgraduate and as part of the medical school curriculum. Subjects include basic diagnostics such as the stethoscope and taking/reading blood pressure levels.
"If a pharmacist is monitoring a cardio clinic or a diabetes clinic, he should be able to put a scope on," Evans says. "Some pharmacists don’t want to put their hands on patients simply because they’ve always been back in the pharmacy. When facilities are trying to save the cost of staff physicians, if they can get someone who can monitor the patient and who knows drugs, then so much the better." The school also sponsors programs on collaborative clinics by inviting clinical pharmacists from the Veterans Administration and the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists to lecture.
"This is not about hospitalization; it’s about ambulatory care." Evans says. "Seventy-five to 80% of VA patients don’t need to see a doctor. They just need maintenance. I think the HMOs and managed care will be next to try it, and when they do, you’ll see the state laws on prescribing grow."
[For details, contact: Donna Beehrle, PharmD, Ambulatory Care Pharmacotherapy Specialist, West Palm Beach VA Medical Center, 7305 North Military Trail, West Palm Beach, FL 33410. Tele-phone: (561) 882-7205. Kim Mowrey, PharmD, Assistant Director of Pharmacy, James A. Haley Veterans Hospital, 1300 Bruce B. Downs Blvd., Tampa, FL 33612. Telephone: (813) 972-2000. Barry Browne, PharmD, Coordinator, Drug Information Services, Scott & White Hospital, Temple Texas, 2401 South 31st St., Temple, TX 76508. Carsten Evans, MS, PhD, Nova South-eastern University College of Pharmacy, 3200 S. University Drive, Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33328.]
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