Pharmacy tobacco sales ban upheld by San Francisco judge
November 10th 2008A San Francisco judge denied Philip Morris' request for a temporary restraining order against the ban on pharmacy sales of tobacco products. The ban will affect 52 of 54 Walgreens as well as other chain pharmacies such as Rite-Aid and Longs.
Anticoagulant safety practices call for pharmacist supervision
November 10th 2008The Joint Commission's anticoagulant safety goal goes into effect Jan. 1, 2009. Physicians, pharmacists, and nurses at health-care systems around the country are collaborating to improve best practices and to put more stringent measures in place.
FDA reports nationwide recall of mislabeled ReliOn insulin syringes
November 6th 2008The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is notifying health care professionals and patients that Tyco Healthcare Group LP (Covidien) is recalling one lot of ReliOn sterile, single-use, disposable, hypodermic syringes with permanently affixed hypodermic needles due to possible mislabeling. The use of these syringes may lead to patients receiving an overdose of as much as 2.5 times the intended dose, which may lead to hypoglycemia, serious health consequences, and even death.
Smart pump technology reduces errors and saves lives
October 13th 2008Hospitals throughout California are embracing smart pump technology as a way to reduce error and save lives. Among them are The Little Company of Mary (Torrance), Torrance Memorial Medical Center, and the Kaiser Permanente South Bay Medical Center in Harbor City.
Provident Hospital in Chicago opens a bigger, better pharmacy
October 13th 2008Cook County's Provident Hospital in Chicago has opened a pharmacy three times the size of the old one. The new facility offers six customer-service stations instead of two, seating capacity for 90 people, an additional 1,400 square feet of work space, and restrooms.
SureScripts-RxHub eliminates barriers to e-prescribing in Rhode Island
October 13th 2008Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Rhode Island teams up with Wellpoint NextRx, an independent pharmacy benefit management company, to offer Rhode Island physicians SureScripts-RxHub connectivity, expanding their use of electronic health records and managing patients' prescriptions online.
North Dakota's pharmacy ownership law faces challenges from chain drugstores and hospitals
October 13th 2008North Dakota pharmacists must own at least 51 percent of their pharmacies. This has kept many stores from opening in communities throughout the state. Hospitals and drugstore chains are fighting to change the law.
West Virginia free clinics face regulation by state pharmacy board
October 13th 2008Free clinics in West Virginia dispense more than 500,000 prescriptions a year. Earlier this year they came under regulation by the state pharmacy board. Defenders argue that the board is trying to fix something that isn't broken. The board says that patient safety requires oversight.
Kansas City pharmacists mobilize to fight meth use
October 13th 2008Criminals buy cold remedies for the pseudoephedrine, which they use to make methamphetamine. Kansas pharmacists are fighting back with MethShield, an electronic program that tracks sales and catches illegal purchasers in the act. It even calls the cops.