Retail pharmacists fill prescriptions, manage inventory, provide customer service, administer vaccinations, and may teach. They ensure safe medication dispensing and delegate tasks to pharmacy technicians. They also keep track of inventory and may provide basic vaccinations if authorized.
Retail pharmacists assist patients in wellness by filling prescriptions, supervising any pharmacy technician, providing customer service, managing pharmacy inventory, administering vaccinations, and teaching. To complete all these tasks, these professionals must be highly detailed and organized, with good communication and social skills. While they may sell products beyond the pharmacy, their primary concern is always getting consumers the drugs they need.
A retail pharmacist’s greatest duty is to complete prescription orders. This starts with collecting patient data from formal prescription slips, which the consumer can present or which a physician can submit electronically from another location. The pharmacist checks this information for possible drug interactions and verifies that the patient is indeed authorized to receive the drug(s). He then takes payment from the client or verifies the client’s health insurance coverage, often filling out third-party insurance forms.
A retail pharmacist is responsible for safely dispensing all medications in the pharmacy, but he or she does not always perform all the steps of filling prescriptions. He often delegates some tasks to qualified pharmacy technicians. In some cases, the pharmacist may contact other pharmacists who specialize in a specific type of drug for information. This allows the pharmacy to complete many more prescription orders than if it were working alone. If the retail pharmacist has technicians available, he or she will be responsible for managerial tasks such as scheduling, monitoring adherence to pharmacy policy and other regulations, and payroll.
Customer service beyond prescription filling is also part of a retail pharmacist’s job. This might include explaining the benefits or drawbacks of specific drugs and other health-related equipment in the pharmacy. Answering questions about using drugs is also standard. If a consumer needs help finding something over-the-counter, they can tell the consumer where to find it or even physically take them to the item. In some cases, a retail pharmacist liaises between the physician and the consumer to match the drugs to the generic version rather than the brand name in order to help the consumer purchase the drug.
Consumers expect pharmacies at retail locations to have medications on hand; therefore, another element of a retail pharmacist’s job is to keep track of an order inventory. Many drugs in pharmacies are under strict regulation, so retail pharmacists keep careful records of when a substance arrives, who dispenses it and how much, the cost, and when a reorder is likely to need to occur. Checking inventory for old or expired medications is another task.
In some cases, a retail pharmacist has the necessary training and authorization to provide some basic vaccinations, such as flu shots. If the pharmacist is qualified, he or she can announce the availability of vaccines when appropriate and administer them in a controlled environment. Sometimes the pharmacist works with the pharmacy manager or owner to arrange for someone else to provide this service if the pharmacist is unable to do it himself.
Some retail pharmacists also teach. This can happen in the traditional classroom, but also directly in the pharmacy, as if someone were hospitalized under the direction of the pharmacist. Depending on the jurisdiction, the pharmacist may need special licenses to do this.
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