Hospital Pharmacist

Overview

Pharmacists are essential to the hospital's medication use processes through selection, procurement, storage, ordering, preparing, verifying, dispensing, administration, and monitoring of medications (Joint Commission, 2011). The pharmacist facilitates the medication use process pursuant to a doctor's prescription order and provides the patient information regarding medications administered in the hospital. In collaboration with other health care professionals, the pharmacist selects the best medication option to create the most effective treatment plan. The pharmacist works with the medical and nursing staff to ensure that the right dose, strength, dosage form, and medications prescribed for the appropriate diagnosis and clinical condition. In addition, pharmacists identifies drug-drug interactions, allergies, medication side effects, and participate in clinical rounds to ensure that the medical and nursing staff is following proper procedures and guidelines for patient administration of medications in hospital.

Hospital Pharmacist Responsibilities

The hospital pharmacist has a unique and important responsibility and is valuable to the organization. These responsibilities include using appropriate methods to store, secure, prepare, distribute, and establish guidelines to ensure that patients are administered the correct medication. In addition, the hospital pharmacist provides drug information, participates in clinical drug trials, consults with patients on the effects of medication doses; including the correct administration of the doses, conducting quality control procedures, and maintains high standards for sterile medication preparations. An important responsibility of the hospital pharmacist is to ensure that patients receive the correct medication. Mohamed and Gabr (2010) state, "Medication errors account for 19% to 28% of medication errors in hospitalized patients..." (p. 24). Considering this factor, the hospital's current focus is on improving the quality of the medication administration process. Overmedication can result in serious health complications, including death, and the costs of these circumstances are high. Therefore, the pharmacist will work to review and improve current distribution process that assists in reducing medication errors, and increases patient safety.

Market Demand for Pharmacists

The current demand for pharmacists is increasing, especially in this era where the early Baby Boomers are retiring and there is a shortage of pharmacists in the coming golden years. The United States Department of Labor and Statistics has stated that the market demand for pharmacist opportunities in the coming years is excellent and approximately 290,000 pharmacists have found employment in the United States in 2009 among, which 65% worked at retail pharmacies whereas the remaining 22% worked in hospitals.

As the demand for the pharmacist's increases, employers are offering excellent compensation packages to each candidate to attract the right talent. The statistics provided by the United States Department of Labor and Statics state that the pharmacists earn a median wage of $92,670 and $121,310 a year and the median hourly wage is at $51.27 per hour. Health care organizations design compensation, and benefit packages to attract and retain exceptional talent as a result of the increasing demand of pharmacist. At the moment, the highly qualified pharmacist are very much in demand because of the shortage in both the rural and urban areas and health care organizations are offering the highest entry-level compensation and benefits.

Compensation and Benefits Package

Hospital pharmacists perform a wide array of duties, including ensuring patients receive the correct form and dose of required medications, supervising pharmacy staff, collaborating with the health care team, and keeping up-to-date with medicinal research and development (Human Resources, 2010). It is necessary for a hospital pharmacist to have a minimum six years of education that culminates in a doctor of pharmacy degree (Interview with a Hospital Pharmacist, 2012). The responsibilities of hospital pharmacists are vast, and the training required for certification is immense. Pharmacists must pass a national board examination to license as a registered pharmacist. These factors affect the generous compensation and benefits package offered to hospital pharmacists.

Health care organizations should follow fair employment laws, federal, and state laws while establishing the pharmacist salaries. Social security act (1935), federal unemployment tax act, and workers compensation acts are a few examples. The hospital's human resources department should consider external factors that include environment, cost of living, market demand, social needs, and economic conditions. Cascio stated (2010), "The government plays a major role in the design of any benefits package. While controlling the cost of benefits is a major concern of employers, the social and economic welfare of citizens is the major concern of government" (p. 466).