Pharmacists are trapped in a system that threatens patient safety.

Thomas E. Menighan, BSPharm, MBA, ScD (Hon), FAPhA APhA Executive Vice President and CEO writes: If you ask me what keeps me up at night, I’d say it’s the kinds of mistakes that Ellen Gabler described in her January 31 New York Times story, “How Chaos at Chain Pharmacies Is Putting Patients at Risk.”  During my time as a community pharmacist, I cherished the relationships I established with patients and understood the great responsibility that came with the trust they placed in me.

Pharmacists take an oath to, among other things, “assure optimal outcomes” for patients. I can attest to the emphasis our profession places on patient safety. When it comes to medication-related errors, even one is too many.  Unfortunately, the current system sets pharmacists up to fail, and in turn, pharmacists are burning out at high rates.

This is an issue that not only puts patients at risk but deprives pharmacists of the opportunity to provide the kind of patient care we all got into pharmacy to provide. You can see it in the desperate pleas for change to state boards of pharmacy Gabler highlighted in her story. And we’re seeing it in the responses to those who have taken our Well-being Index for Pharmacists: The weight of the potentially dire consequences of filling the wrong prescription or missing dangerous drug interactions is crushing too many pharmacists. 

Special Guest:

Mike Schwab Executive Vice President

North Dakota Pharmacists Association