Source of information: Safe Medication – Original article here

Many people have a particular image of pharmacists as medication experts in white coats who work behind community pharmacy counters to dispense prescriptions. Some patients often assume that this is exactly what pharmacists who work in hospitals and clinics do as well. While some pharmacy staff in hospitals and clinics dispense medications, a community pharmacist also have additional roles that can significantly improve the health and well-being of patients.

One of the most important duties of a community pharmacist is medication reconciliation, which is the process of comparing a patient’s new medication orders to all of the medications that the patient has been taking.  It’s so important to keep a medication list and bring it with you to every trip to see a new doctor, to an urgent care clinic, or to the emergency room. Pharmacists will talk to you or your family members, contact your pharmacy, or look at your past hospital and clinic visits to make sure the medications given during your stay or prescribed for you to take home are accurate.

Pharmacists also work on teams with doctors and nurses to ensure that you receive the best care possible. They review the medicines that patients are taking and make recommendations to physicians about which medicines should be continued, which should be discontinued, and which new medicines should be prescribed. This process allows your medications to work as well as possible while minimizing side effects.