Question

Judy, a new allied health professional, has little background in pharmacology. Sara, a young mother of a 2 year old, calls and states that her child has a cold with fever. She asks Judy to call in a prescription to the local pharmacy for a child. Judy does not think that it is necessary to ask for any further questions about the child's condition because "a cold is a cold." Judy does not pull the medical record and sees that the child is allergic to penicillin but was give Augmentin previously. So, without consulting the physician, Judy orders the same antibiotic. The next day Sara calls to say the child has a rash covering the entire body and cannot breath properly. Judy tells Sara to continue the medicine because it sounds like the child has measles and will be fine. Later that day Judy learns that the child is in intensive care at the local hospital with an adverse reaction.

1. Please explain the pharmacists responsibility upon receiving this prescription.

Answer 1

Pharmacist primary responsibility is to ensure the patient has a written prescription by the treating physician .Only over the counter medicines can be given on verbal orders .Antibiotics doesn't belong to over the counter drugs .

As per the question Judy just have a background knowledge about pharmacology which shows that she is not a qualified pharmacist  

So A pharmacist should

1.verify the prescription in a written form

2.ensure the prescription is written by a treating physician

3.check for allergies if any

4.explain the drug drug interactions

5.explain the side-effects of the drug