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JOURNAL OF ASIAN ASSOCIATION OF SCHOOLS OF PHARMACY - Volume 5, January - December, 2016

Pages: 333-334
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Working With Older People - A Rich Learning Opportunity for Pharmacists

Author: Chris Alderman

Category: Pharmacy

Abstract:

Worldwide, the pharmacy is in a constant state of development. In comparison to some other health vocations, the fundamental role of the profession has transformed quite markedly from its origin in compounding and dispensing, towards the provision and interpretation of sophisticated medicines information, and the adoption of true clinical pharmacy practice. Interestingly, although the ambition of a lot of pharmacy students is to practice clinical pharmacy, it is curious that many students, if asked to concisely define the word "clinical," may actually struggle to be able to do this. A popular definition that is sometimes cited is along the lines of "involving or concerned with the direct observation and treatment of living patients." The very nature of this definition tends to evoke a picture whereby clinical practice takes place, by necessity, in hospitals. Indeed, much of clinical pharmacy practice does indeed take place in hospitals and does involve the treatment of inpatients, but to present this as a sole and exclusive picture would be misleading. There are opportunities for clinical pharmacy practice in a multitude of settings. Moreover, the same can be said for clinical education for pharmacists. No one would argue that classroom based learning for pharmacy students is superfluous, and nor that clinical teaching for pharmacy students in hospitals is not extremely valuable. However, a broader picture is emerging in pharmacy education, and it is clear that clinical educators must seize diverse teaching opportunities where they exist.