On-site Patient Assessment

Pharmacists are responsible for ensuring that their patients remain healthy by taking their medications correctly. They play a vital role in assessing the right medication based on the drug's safety, efficacy, indication, and convenience for the patient. These days, some pharmacists have the ability to prescribe and administer medications through injection. To best serve the customer to that end requires that the pharmacist properly assess the patient.

Pharmacy is a patient-centered profession, which is why patient assessment is one of the most important skills that a pharmacist can have. Patient assessment allows the pharmacist to detect medical-related problems and monitor newly prescribed or ongoing medications and this information helps improve patient care.

Patient assessment consists of five important roles;

• The first role is to determine if the problem is caused by the patient's illness or a drug the patient is currently taking.

• The second step in the assessment process is managing or monitoring patients who require chronic drug therapy.

• The third step allows the pharmacist to diagnose and treat minor acute illnesses or refer the patient.

• The fourth step improves the pharmacist's ability to provide information on the patient's disease, complications, and management.

• The final step allows the pharmacist to effectively communicate with other health professionals, as well as the patient.

In Canada, pharmacists are trained in performing and the interpretation of physical assessments as they relate to drug therapy.

Medication Therapy Management

MTM, Medication therapy management, is a group of services provided by health care providers, including pharmacists, to ensure that patients get the best therapeutic outcome. The process includes five elements;

• Medical therapy review

• Personal medication record

• A medication-related action plan

• Intervention or referral

• Documentation and follow-up

MTM is effective for patients with multiple chronic conditions, high prescription costs, complicated medication therapies, and multiple prescribers. MTM is effective in performing the necessary assessment of the patient's health status and formulating a medication treatment plan.

Old Town Pharmacy was designed with all these factors in mind; it’s a full service drug store which has a small private setting that allows for relaxed conversations about healthy lifestyle and safe medication use.