Top 9 Pharmacist Duties and Responsibilities

Top 9 Pharmacist Duties and ResponsibilitiesTop 9 Pharmacist Duties and ResponsibilitiesNo single job description covers all the 274,000-plus pharmacist positions in the United States. Practice settings for pharmacists vary widely from independently owned drugstores to nationwide grocery store chains, medical centers, military bases and marijuana dispensaries. Pharmacists Responsibilities Despite the professional diversity, researchers with the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statics and officials for pharmacy organizations agree that pharmacists perform a mix of the following tasks while on the job. Items appear roughly in the order of how much time pharmacists spend doing them. Does your practice look different? 1. Dispense Prescriptions This is the filling, licking and sticking most people imagine when they conjure a mental image of a pharmacist counting out tablets, preparing a bottle label and handling medications to patients. 2. Communicate With Prescribers Any time a prescrip tion order is unclear or potentially harmful for a patient, you need to confirm the dosage and formulation (e.g., aufgetaut or tablet), as well as whether brand name product is required or if you can substitute a generic equivalent. 3. Ensure Patients Safety Check each patients medication record every time he or she gets a new or refill prescription filled. This is the best way for a pharmacist to prevent potentially dangerous interactions between drugs. 4. Counsel Patients This involves more than informing about adverse reactions and interactions with other medications, food, alcohol and other beverages like grapefruit juice. Counseling includes training patients how and when to take doses, following up with patients to see if medications are working, sharing tips on how to minimize side effects while maximizing benefits and listening to all of a patients concerns. 5. Work With Patients on General Health Maintaining health requires more than taking prescription medicati ons, Pharmacists can help patients heal and avoid getting sick by sharing advice on using nonprescription remedies, taking health supplements such as vitamins, using herbal and natural health products, exercising and maintaining a good diet. 6. Deal With Insurance Companies Pharmacists working in a chain and independent pharmacies, especially, have to submit insurance claims and work with private insurance companies, Medicare and Medicaid to ensure payment, and resolve coverage denials so patients do not go with medications. 7. Manage Staff Pharmacists have the ultimate responsibility for ensuring the three Rs of right drug, right patient and right dose. Meeting this responsibility requires overseeing the work of and mentoring pharmacy technicians, student interns and residents. Pharmacy owners and supervisorins also have responsibilities for making hiring decisions and setting and enforcing workplace policies. 8. Perform Administrative Tasks Everyone in a pharmacy has s ome responsibilities for keeping patient files up to date, making sure needed products are stocked and required reports get generated and filed. If you hold a supervisor or management position, you can spend as much or more time on administrative duties as on patient care. 9. Educate Health Provider Colleagues Doctors, nurses and other healthcare providers about new medications and drug therapy protocols. Pharmacists also have to complete continuing education courses to maintain and renew their licenses keep up to date on drug approvals, product recalls and changes to medications indications and warnings and make sure they comply with federal and state laws regulating pharmacy. The last item is especially important. Each state and U.S. territory has its own pharmacy practice law, which changes from year to year. Joining ?your states pharmacy association can make learning about an complying with practice regulations easier. Earn a pharmacy compounding accreditation.

Whats Your Favorite Question to Ask in An Interview

Whats Your Favorite Question to Ask in An InterviewFavorite Question to Ask in An InterviewWhats Your Favorite Question to Ask in An InterviewIf you browse through the archived posts in this blog, youll find plenty of advice about questions you must ask during a job interview. Asking the interviewer questions is a good way to find out more about the company or the job youre interested in.It goes without saying that an interview should be a two-way conversation. Ideally, you should ask as many questions as the interviewer asks you if leid more. After all, both sides need to make sure the job and company are a good fit.Popular questions job seekers can ask includeWhat do you feel are the most important skills required in performing this job?What are the most important results I would need to achieve in the first 6 months?What are the top challenges Ill face in this position?Some job seekers may have a favorite question they like to ask at a job interview that reveals a lot about eithe r the job or the company. So, lets turn this post over to you What is your favorite question to ask in a job interview, and why?

How to Explain a Demotion in a Job Interview

How to Explain a Demotion in a Job InterviewHow to Explain a Demotion in a Job InterviewIf youve taken any obvious steps down the career ladder, whether in title or role, you should be prepared for your kompetenzprofil employer to ask about the demotion during your interview. While this doesnt have to be a deal-breaker for the position, you should try to frame that transition in the least damaging way possible. Remember that an interview is your opportunity tohighlight your strengths. Thats true even for situations where youre asked about weaknesses or possible career low points. Therefore Be honest.Dont fudge the facts. If you were terminated for cause, dont spin it as a layoff. The truth will likely emerge during abackground check, at which point, the company will revoke your offer.Be brief.While you will need to address the demotion when you are asked about it, there is no reason to dwell on it.Be ready to move on.Prepare an explanation that focuses on the positive as much as poss ible and then move on to making a case for hiring you. Do your research on the company and the position, and be ready to discuss yourrelevant skillsand experiences. You are there to present yourself as the best possible candidate for the job, and while you should have a plausible, truthful answer to this tough question prepared, there is no reason to elaborate any further than necessary. The Best Way to Answer Interview Questions About a Demotion If your demotion was in the past and you have now moved on to a higher-level job, you can emphasize what you have learned and accomplished since the demotion, and how it qualifies you for a higher-level job. Perhaps youidentified a weaknessand took steps like courses or workshops to strengthen that area. Keep the focus of your response on a positive aspect of the experience. Your task will be more challenging if you are currently in a job that represents a step down. In that situation, you should emphasize the skills you have applied and the positive results which you have generated in your current role. If there were circumstances beyond your control, such as a restructuring which reduced the number of management positions, then you can explain those factors, but dont make excuses for your shortcomings, or blame the company. In some cases,the demotion may be voluntary. Maybe you wanted reduced hours after returning to work after maternity leave or were taking challenging graduate-level courses and couldnt handle a travel responsibility involved in the job. In those situations, explain simply and clearly why you opted to request an adjusted role. Avoid an overly lengthy or personal response your best bet is to be factual, not emotional. You can emphasize that you requested the demotion, and that your goal was to ensure you would not leave the company in the lurch. However you respond, do make sure to be honest. Remember, your interviewer may check your references so dishonesty could be uncovered. While this isn t the easiest question to answer, as you can see, it by no means indicates a dead-end in the interview. Dont Criticize the Company Regardless of which angle youre coming from, be careful not to criticize management in any way. Avoid expressions of frustration or complaints, too. No need to provide analysis of company missteps that may have led to the demotion, either. Keep your answer brief and factual in tone. If you have identified any issues in yourskill setor wertzuwachs which led to your demotion and taken concrete, documented steps to address those issues, you might include some of that information. For example, if a previous job required you to create reports in Excel and you were demoted because you werent able to do so, but now have taken online courses and mastered Excel, then you might reference that development. Put Your Best Foot Forward A preemptive way to defuse any concern about a demotion is to acquire a reference from a boss or colleague at that organizatio n which clearly affirms the value you have added as an employee. You can also start the spin in a positive direction by framing the issue in yourcover letterorresume, so you have a foundation which you can elaborate on during the interview. If you can find a way to discuss the demotion as an opportunity to strengthen your skills, you should. For example, returning to sales after leaving a management position might have given you the needed opportunity to refresh your knowledge of your product andclient base, making you a more effective manager than you were before.