In view of the prevailing conditions and dangers posed by modern medicines, the role of pharmacist is becoming significant in case of dispensing of medicines which has to be judiciously and accurately done, said Dr R S Thakur, president, Federation of Indian Pharmacists’ Organisations (FIPO).

It is pharmacist’s professional responsibility to ensure that prescriptions are properly dispensed and any potential medication error is completely avoided, he added. He was talking to Pharmabiz about the dispensing responsibilities of the pharmacists.

According to him a pharmacist has to dispense the prescription applying perfect knowledge, expertise and skill with adequate communication ability to facilitate rational and proper use of prescribed medicines. The prescription is a healthcare programme that governs the plan of care for an individual patient and is implemented by a qualified practitioner.

"As medications have increasingly become pre-packaged manufactured products, the term prescription now usually refers to an order that a pharmacist dispenses and a patient takes certain medications. But there are some legal implications also. A major aspect is that the prescriber must take the responsibility for the clinical care of the patient and in particular for monitoring efficacy and safety. As the medical practice is becoming increasingly complex, the scope and meaning of the term prescription is also getting broadened to include clinical assessments, laboratory tests, and imaging studies relevant to optimizing the safety or efficacy of medical treatment,” he opined.

When talking about the role of pharmacists, he said the pharmacist should be much more responsible while carrying out his duty as the process of dispensing a prescription is a highly responsible job where extreme care is required to ensure safety in dispensing. An effective system of safe dispensing with checking and re-checking of prescription before dispensing medicines is not only very important but also inevitably necessary in the interest of health and happiness of the patient.

“As human error cannot be eliminated completely it is essential that all prescriptions written by the doctors are scientifically and technically checked by the pharmacist in each and every respect before it is dispensed. The element of re-checking by the pharmacist reduces prescription errors to a great extent and prevents mishaps or medication errors,” he remarked.

Finally Dr Thakur said there are seven Rs. (rights) which need to be practiced by a practicing pharmacist. They are right choice of drug, right dose, right dosage form, right route of administration, right frequency of administration, right selection of patient and at right time. These are the basic requirements of clinical pharmacokinetics to provide safe and effective medication and eliminate medication related complications.