Chain Pharmacy

A survey of new Rx, new generic, and new OTC products

As expected, the U.S. Supreme Court recently struck down a landmark case that would have prohibited data-mining companies from selling physicians' prescribing information to pharmaceutical manufacturers for use in marketing. Still some independent pharmacists say they are not in favor of the practice.

Hospitals and health systems that have not caught up with the latest version of The Joint Commission's National Patient Safety Goals could run into trouble.

Readers speak out about the moratorium on new pharmacy schools, pharmacist turnover and the POWER program, job satisfaction, and more

One component of a new federal action plan for controlling viral hepatitis calls for expanded delivery of hepatitis A and B vaccines through pharmacies, beginning in 2013.

A pharmacy student who works in a retail pharmacy and has completed several clinical and community rotations has not seen wide implementation of MTM at any level.

According to new guidelines, researchers at the Alzheimer's Association and the National Institute of Aging of the National Institutes of Health have categorized AD into 3 different stages: preclinical, mild cognitive impairment, and Alzheimer's dementia.

NEW: In View from the Zoo, David Stanley launches his monthly column with a 21st century Catch-22.

While academe is working toward training people to work in an environment of interdisciplinary teamwork, what is needed is a shift in our sense of community in the workplace, a broadening of our sense of who we are and what our place is in the larger patient-care environment.

If you dare to deny the importance of your technicians, try leaving them out of the mix for just 1 week; you'll see your business come to a grinding halt.

Chronic cluster headaches are debilitating for patients who experience them. A recent study concluded that low-intensity anticoagulation with warfarin was associated with significantly higher incidence of remission and less headache impact on patients' lives.

Polypharmacy is becoming a greater risk factor for elderly cancer patients, resulting in an increased risk of adverse drug reactions and drug interactions, according to a recent study published in The Lancet Oncology.

The involvement of specialty pharmacists and nurses increased medication adherence in patients with hepatitis C (HCV), recent research has reported.

According to a briefing presented to Congress on Tuesday, drug shortages are having an enormous impact on the nation's health systems through delayed treatment, less effective drug treatments provided to patients, and increased drug costs.

Duane Reade?s new flagship store on Wall Street in New York City features sushi chefs and a new connection to Walgreens? pharmacy network. The Duane Reade store signals a prototype for future Duane Reade stores. Duane Reade is owned by Walgreens and has more than 250 stores in the New York City region.

Low-cost generic drug programs pioneered by Wal-Mart and other big-box retailers are a mixed blessing for patients with diabetes. The loss-leader strategy used by big-box, chain, independent, and online pharmacies has boosted the mean cost of branded diabetes medications by up to 113% since 2008.

Kaiser Permanente pharmacists in Southern California have finally agreed to a new 3-year contract. The new terms were reached after an extended battle that saw pharmacists vote to strike, then reject what Kaiser called a final offer.

The College of Psychiatric and Neurologic Pharmacists (CPNP) is preparing to launch its CPNP Foundation, which will promote state-of-the-art and essential treatment for people affected by psychiatric and neurologic illness.

While the U.S. population is expected to increase 12.6% between 2000 and 2013, the number of pharmacy school graduates will come close to doubling. The oversupply of pharmacists is already having a drastic effect on student debt, job prospects, and wages. The time to halt the proliferation of pharmacy schools has come.

Whereas historic pharmacy practice linked the pharmacist to a product, as pharmacists move toward more complete healthcare services, they are now also providers of cognitive services. As pharmacists delve further into cognitive services and take on greater patient responsibility, the process is likely to add to liability exposure.

The days of too many jobs chasing too few pharmacists are history. Today the situation is reversed. Is the situation grim for new pharmacists seeking to enter the market? Not necessarily, says one expert.

Readers speak out about pill-splitting, depression screening, the POWER program, rapping pharmacists, and more

A survey of new Rx, new generic, and new OTC products

An accurate understanding of the effectiveness of medications, which guides decisions about their optimal use, depends on a critical appraisal of published literature, according to Alvin Goo, PharmD. Goo is a clinical pharmacist with Harborview Medical Center and clinical associate professor, University of Washington School of Pharmacy and Family Medicine, Seattle.

Pharmacists face many changes in their work and the way they do it. But if they don't stay focused on one crucial fact, the rest won't be worth a hill of beans.

The Food and Drug Administration and Federal Trade Commission are cracking down on fraudulent dietary supplements claiming to treat sexually transmitted diseases.

As pharmacists responsibilities expand, so may some of their liabilities. A number of those liabilities may be related to controlled substances.

The results are in, and this year Health Mart wins by a landslide. Pharmacy owner Timothy Davis and other satisfied franchisees tell us why.

A meta-analysis of studies on recurrent venous thromboembolism; updated guidelines for management of atrial fibrillation; a meta-analysis of studies comparing generic and branded warfarin