Pharmacy is another important job because each day, they have to provide services to an average of tens of thousands of patients per month, with thousands of types of drugs and only a few dozen pharmacists. Everyone works responsibly and takes care of medicines, both outpatients and inpatients, including sending medicines by mail. During the COVID-19 crisis at Thammasat University Hospital, it is very accurate and correct. Today, we will take you to follow behind the scenes of the pharmacy work. How do they work? Why can they take care of and manage medicines for patients so well?
From the previous episode, the admin took everyone to get to know another center where every second is truly valuable. The work requires focus and monitoring all the time because if there is any mistake or it is too late, it means that we may lose the patient. Thammasat Heart Center and Cardiac Intensive Care Unit (CCU), a center that takes care of heart disease patients from treatment to follow-up on recovery and sends patients back to their warm families again.
Today is the turn of “pharmacists”, the name of the branch of medicine that we often call them because they have deep expertise in medicine. Plus, their work is surrounded by thousands of types of medicine. It can be said that they encounter more medicine than patients. Today, I will take everyone to get to know pharmacy work by Pharmacist Natthanan Klipngern and Pharmacist Pawinee Likhitvorakul, outpatient pharmacists at Thammasat University Hospital, and Pharmacist Wuttichai Kaweekul, inpatient pharmacists at Thammasat University Hospital.
“Confirm, check, dispense medicine”
Every step related to medicine is the work of the pharmacist. Starting after the doctor has finished examining the patient, the doctor will issue a prescription. The pharmacist’s duty is to read the details and confirm the doctor’s prescription. After that, it will be sent for another check for accuracy. In terms of the amount or type of medicine given to the patient, is there a chance that they will fight? If so, a phone call must be made to consult with the doctor before dispensing the medicine to the patient.
Telepharmacy
- In addition to the main duties of confirming prescriptions, checking drug lists and dispensing drugs, pharmacists also have Telepharmacy, which is the performance of pharmacists through remote communication technology, covering everything from giving advice about drugs, monitoring treatment results and side effects. It will be used with 3 patient cases as follows:
- Patients who need to take more than 10 medications, meaning they have to take a large amount of medication at a time, are more likely to become confused and take the wrong medication.
- Patients who need to take drugs that may interact with each other must be monitored for other abnormalities for safety reasons.
- Patients who need to take warfarin or anticoagulants called blood thinners, which are used to reduce blood clotting, are drugs that require special monitoring. Pharmacists must closely monitor their use.
Differences between outpatient and inpatient pharmacy work
The obvious difference is the stock of drugs. Drugs for outpatients and inpatients are different. The drug distribution system is also different. There will be robots to help in the pharmacy work. For example, there are currently 2 machines in total: we have a machine to distribute drugs for high-risk drugs and an automatic pill dispenser. Bringing in robots helps with the speed of drug distribution, safety, more accuracy in drug types, and is easy to use.
Adapting to the COVID-19 pandemic
The pharmacy department has 3 measures for dispensing medicines during COVID-19: via mail, taxi, and Drive-Thru. The hospital will focus on providing services via mail because most patients are most comfortable using this service.
“Working patterns have changed to ensure that the medicines dispensed are safe.”
In addition, there is also social distancing in medicine management. Additional steps have been added to strictly comply with COVID-19 prevention measures. You can be sure that the medicines dispensed are safe from COVID-19. For example, before COVID-19, the housekeeper would come in to receive medicine or the logistics would come in to search for medicine inside. But now, everyone has to wait outside and the pharmacist will take the medicine outside instead.
“Because we hope that the patient’s symptoms will improve from the medicine they receive.”
Many people have questions about why the waiting period for medicine is so long. For pharmacists, dispensing medicine to patients is the most important and most careful thing to do. If there is even a slight mistake or even just one letter of the medicine name that is wrong, the consequences can be serious and even fatal to the patient who received the wrong medicine. Every pharmacist hopes that the patient will feel better, be cured of the disease or illness that they are suffering from, and be able to control the disease that they are suffering from.
“Pharmacist’s work beyond dispensing medicines”
In addition to regular dispensing, pharmacists also care about patients taking their medications correctly and understanding how to use them so they can get better. Sometimes, time is spent giving advice on medication use or other advice with good intentions. Even though it slows down the process, it’s all because pharmacists really care about patients getting better and using medications safely.
“We did it because we were really concerned about the patients.”
Sometimes there is a problem that some medicines may arrive late or there is a drug conflict, causing patients to have to wait longer than usual. This is because the pharmacist has to call to discuss with the doctor about whether the medicine is suitable for the patient, whether the patient can take it, or whether it can be replaced with another medicine. Even though it may take a little longer, I want you to know that the pharmacist is doing everything for the safety of the patient in receiving the medicine.
“Communication is a challenge.”
Many people misunderstand the communication of pharmacists during the dispensing process, which requires knowledge on how to take medication. Some people may look at it and think that the pharmacist is fierce and loud, but you have to understand that the dispensing area is already noisy outside. Therefore, sometimes the pharmacist has to speak louder so that the patient can hear. Especially if the patient is elderly, the pharmacist does not intend to be fierce, but just has to speak so that the patient can hear and communicate completely.
“You have to develop yourself all the time.”
Pharmacy work must be constantly adjusted and improved. All feedback and suggestions received from patients and service users will be considered, planned, and developed continuously to meet the needs of all patients. Importantly, as it is a university hospital, there are a lot of new drugs. Pharmacists must always update to answer patient questions or choose the right drugs for the patient.
Conclusion
Pharmacists are a job that patients and those who understand the services in every hospital see their work all the time. But in fact, their work is not just about dispensing medicine to patients as we see. Behind the time that pharmacists spend, we have wondered why it takes so long to pick up just this medicine. It is full of determination and concern that we may never know.
Pharmacists’ work is full of hope and concern for patients. They hope that patients receive the correct, safe, and most suitable medicine for them. Providing knowledge to create understanding in taking medicine is an expression of concern that pharmacists give to every patient. So the next time you are waiting to receive medicine, let’s think about the concern that they are doing behind the scenes that we don’t see.
“All pharmacists are attentive. Even though our service may be a bit slow, we want you to understand because we really want patients to get better and use medicine safely.”
Pharmacy: Precision from Care | Thammasat University Hospitalร์เฉลิมพระเกียรติ
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