Your local pharmacy is often a one stop shop for picking up prescriptions and other medical supplies. However, if you don’t take the time to get to know your local pharmacist your missing out. Think of your local pharmacist as another qualified expert in your healthcare network. That’s because the pharmacist has obtained years of educational qualifications and professional experience to work in their job. The better your relationship with your local pharmacist, the more they can do to help you with their expertise.
How can your pharmacist assist you?
Your pharmacist will be able to help you in many different ways. Here is a list of some of the most prominent ways on how your pharmacist can help you.
- You can learn more about a medication
At the time of purchasing your medicine, you may not have a clear understanding about what they are. This is where the support offered by a pharmacist can help you if your doctor did not have the time to properly explain a drug. Your pharmacist can deliver the support you need to learn more about each medication. They can help you learn how to consume the medication and what the side effects associated with certain medications are.
- Learn how to consume/store a medication safely
While you are consuming medicine, it is important to be mindful about each drugs instructions, otherwise, you can run into unwanted side-effects. Certain medications need to be stored properly at specific temperatures or the active ingredient can deteriorate. Other medications when not taken as directed can upset one’s stomach or lead to a user being especially drowsy. Drug interactions must also be taken into consideration as the active ingredients in one drug could have an adverse side-effect when paired with another drug. Your local pharmacist can instruct you on everything you may need to know about your medication.
- Keeping track of potential negative drug interactions
If someone is taking multiple drugs for different conditions, they need to be careful of negative side-effects from drug interactions. A person’s general doctor should be keeping track of every drug a person is currently on and how new drugs may effect them. Unfortunately, the pharmacist is often the last line of defense against missed errors when prescribing drugs. Computer databases have been created to cross check drugs and notify when adverse interactions are known but, having a pharmacist double check, who has your best interests at heart, should not be discounted. Someone that has had a good relationship with their local pharmacist will have the added benefit of having developed a history with them. Your local pharmacist can often give advice concerning health related topics in response to what they already know about you.
- You can learn how to manage your health issues
Your local pharmacist is often in a prime position to recommend different methods and treatments to improve your health with their expertise and history they have of you. Your local pharmacist has worked with hundreds of other people and can use this knowledge to recount on previous interactions to give advice. If you are taking medications for a certain health condition for an extended duration of time, it is good to talk with your pharmacist on a regular basis and learn the best ways to manage it. Your local pharmacist should be viewed as another tool in one’s healthcare arsenal to ensure your continued good health.
Pharmacists have years of knowledge from education and professional experience that you should take advantage of by getting to know them. Tony’s Family Pharmacy has been in the community for over 30 years providing exceptional customer experience. If you don’t know our pharmacists by name yet, what’s stopping you? We are ready and happy to help! Contact Us if you have any questions.
