Krunal Patel Unit 1: Discourse Analysis/Initial Encounter First Draft The words writing and pharmacy are often

perceived as unrelated concepts. The perception that pharmacy is not very writing intensive leads many to lean towards this profession, as students who pick pharmacy as a career usually do so because they have an interest in science, they want to work with people and have a flair for analysing problems students sometimes choose a scientific career because they also prefer subjects that dont require the need to write lots of essays(Valente, 2013). Although pharmacy is not as writing intensive as other disciplines, it is a necessary skill for pharmacists to develop in order to effectively perform various tasks while maintaining effective communication with coworkers, customers, management, and other parties. Roles of the pharmacist in the retail setting include receiving prescriptions from doctors, and making sure they are entered into the system, filled, and dispensed accurately by the pharmacy team. Pharmacists must also verify prescriptions from how they are written to the end product, ensuring that there are no mistakes written by doctors that could lead to dangerous interactions or incorrect doses. In addition, they must often verify information about prescriptions and patients with doctors to provide the best course of treatment. Pharmacists in the retail setting also serve as the medical consultants- sometimes the final ones as patients transition back to their everyday lives- and aim to address any questions or concerns that patients and customers have. Forms of writing like online websites and other sources of media are becoming increasingly important with the advancement of both technology and healthcare. The Pharmacy Times is one example of such a website. The nature of pharmacy in the retail setting orients itself around a handful of values that guide every action of the pharmacist, primarily the combination of patient care and customer service. Essentially, pharmacists try their best to make the customers life less complicated, whether it is inside or outside of the pharmacy. Overall, there is one goal: to improve the quality of every patients life, specifically with regards to his or her health. Pharmacists aim to give them the best customer service by improving their ease of access to the medications they need, working with their insurance companies to establish a reasonable price, and making sure they leave the pharmacy with sufficient knowledge about their medication(s). In addition, pharmacists are beginning to take on a larger-than-traditional role in that chain pharmacists are assuming the role of patient health coach, working side by side with patients to help increase their understanding of chronic disease and the impact their medications have (Sax, 2011). By upholding these values, pharmacists and all members of the pharmacy team aim to optimize efficiency in order to best serve the customers I chose pharmacy school for one reason- because my strengths and primary interests have always lied in sciences, mostly in chemistry and molecular biology. Personally, one of my greatest weaknesses has always been writing, and I never had or felt the need to focus on it extensively, since I had always aimed my education towards preparing for the medical field as I grew older. Ive always been inspired by the doctors and healthcare professionals Ive met, and the lengths they go through to ensure patients are getting the care they deserve. Pharmacists work for the patients interests and needs, using their specialty and education to avoid medical errors such as drug interactions while addressing medication adherence issues. My time on coop reassured my choice in my discipline. I hope to uphold the values of a pharmacist by helping customers obtain their medications with ease, understanding their medications and the

importance of taking them as prescribed, and do everything with efficiency as a pharmacist if I find myself in retail pharmacy. In retail, written communication is essential, more than most would initially think. Prescriptions are the most commonly used form of written communication, and the importance of the information they hold is tremendous. Prescriptions contain medication information including the name, dose, quantity, directions, patient information, prescriber information, and more. Clearly, the information on prescriptions is significant to the point where at times it can potentially mean the difference between life and death. Prescriptions come in to the pharmacy through various forms of communication, including written scripts, phone calls, electronically (escripts), and faxes. All prescriptions, regardless of form, must be organized, concise, contain all necessary information, and easy to understand. Data entry with all forms of prescriptions must be both written accurately by prescribers and entered into the system with accuracy by pharmacists. Prescriptions also have a universal shorthand code known as SIG codes which allow for medication directions to be communicated quickly, and without the need to write them out entirely. Understanding, clarity, and interpretation of SIG codes are extremely important in communication through prescriptions. Notes are used very often between coworkers, as work has to be passed between shifts. Notes must be written clearly and concisely, while containing all necessary information. Faxes containing other information are also sent between the pharmacy and other parties such as insurance companies, retail corporate, and others. Working in a pharmacy involves the logging of a lot of information, since it is the selling of drugs (sometimes with the possibility of abuse) that is the main function. The Pharmacy Times is a monthly journal which aims to provide practical information to help pharmacists in their daily practices. Pharmacy Times is owned by Intellisphere LLC, who specialize in research, information, and education in healthcare. Intellisphere LLC aims to serve the needs of those in the healthcare, through both traditional and web-based/digital channels. The Pharmacy Times is one of the many publications owned by Intellisphere, and overall, their many publications cover issues regarding several health care fields including pharmacy, nursing, oncology, and urology. The websites about us page states that Intellisphere reaches more than half a million health care professional across nearly all segments of care. Although the site is not verified, the articles are written by professionals who demonstrate ample knowledge of their subject matter, earning them the subscriptions of reliable healthcare professionals. In addition to this, the Pharmacy Times website, as well as the entire Intellisphere LLC has its own editors and publishers to ensure credibility of all journals and blog posts. The Pharmacy Times contains articles and features covering medication errors, drug interactions, patient education, pharmacy technology, disease state management, patient counseling, product news, pharmacy law, and specialty pharmacy (Pharmacy Times). The website has a structure that is easy to navigate, with specialized sections for various audiences. For example, the home page has several different sections, with titles such as 50 states, in which one can specialize on the state they practice in and find relevant issues and news regarding the state, and Health-system, which brings up journals with issues and topics regarding the health care system as a whole and specific aspects of it. It also includes portions for students and the Next-gen pharmacist, where there are ways to sign up for access to specific resources, and the opportunity to be a part of their next-gen pharmacist program in which one can become eligible for awards. There is also a multimedia tab on the homepage, which allows

for users to gain access to the Pharmacy Times through various forms of digital media, including devices such as the iPad and other tablets and smartphones. These tabs allow for different audiences (professionals, students, and other parties) to access information on the website that is most relevant to them. A closer look at various articles on the website shows the type of information, news, and opportunities that the Pharmacy Times offers. For example, if one goes to the 50 states page and selects Massachusetts, one can find events for pharmacists and the general public. One example of an event coming up soon is the 4th Annual Stoklosa Symposium in Woburn, MA on October 24th, 2013. The events are easy to find from just a few clicks from the home page allowing members of the pharmaceutical community to easily get involved. Through this ease of access, navigation, and education the website hopes to bring together pharmacists with common values from everywhere in order to improve the overall state of pharmaceutical and overall healthcare. On the home page of the Pharmacy Times, I was able to find an article that caught my eye. It outlined how CVS Pharmacists have identified about 36 physicians who were inappropriately prescribing controlled medications as the number of deaths caused by prescription drug overdose continues to rise in the United States (Simone, 2013). It is targeted towards the general public so that anyone from a professional to an interested individual with no healthcare experience can understand it. It also has quotes and statistics to back up the information, thus giving it more credibility. The tone of this passage, like most others on the website, is a light one that aims to inform. However, articles about more serious topics maintain the sense of seriousness such as the following article about adherence improvement. After looking into other articles from their monthly subscriptions, one can see that technical information of all kinds was efficiently and coherently broken down, simplified so that almost any individual could read and keep up with the information if they have the interest. For example, theres one article about improving adherence by managing patients expectations with regards to oral antineoplastics and although the title sounds complex, the style of the writing makes it easy for almost any interested party to understand the information. It was easy because the article was informative but well-organized and made good use of diagrams and statistics. One excerpt from this article is as follows: Adherence barriers can be individual (eg, side effects, medication cost, unique health belief), cultural (eg, affected by ethnicity, peer group, age), or systemic (medication access). (Wick, 2013). Clearly, this article explains the issue at hand while still defining terms that many may not know and citing their sources. The main point of most articles is to inform, update, educate, and/or advise pharmacists in many different specific fields. For the most part, it doesnt seem like the articles of the Pharmacy Times use the first person unless necessary nor is there figurative language. The articles overall are straightforward, simple yet maintain all relevant information and data, and aim to help healthcare professionals like pharmacists everywhere. Ultimately, it can be said that the Pharmacy Times and Intellisphere LLC are respectively helping to take pharmacy and the entire healthcare system in a positive direction. The compiling, organizing, simplifying, and distributing of information is something that needs to be done more, especially now that technology is advancing and making it easier to do so. Working in retail has shown me that there are similar problems faced by pharmacists everywhere, and online websites with easy-to-access information such as the Pharmacy Times are becoming more and more

useful. Patient care becomes more difficult as issues keep rising, but having updated information accessible allows for pharmacists and other healthcare professionals to do their jobs to the best of their ability. That is what I one day hope to achieve.

Works Cited Massachusetts. (2013). Retrieved from http://www.pharmacytimes.com/fiftystates/Massachusetts Pharmacy Times. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.pharmacytimes.com/about_us Sax, B. (2011, March 15). Chain drugstores: Providing effective patient care and professional development. Retrieved from http://www.pharmacytimes.com/publications/career/2011/PharmacyCareers_Spring2011/ChainD rugstores-2011 Simone, A. (2013, September 10). Cvs Caremark targets inappropriate prescribers to cut prescription drug abuse. Retrieved from http://www.pharmacytimes.com/news/CVS-CaremarkTargets-Inappropriate-Prescribers-to-Cut-Prescription-Drug-Abuse Valente, S. (2013, March 04). Written communication in pharmacy. Retrieved from http://www.pjonline.com/blog_entry/written_communication_in_pharmacy Wick, J. (2013, September 11). Oral antineoplastics: Improving adherence by managing patients expectations. Retrieved from http://www.pharmacytimes.com/publications/issue/2013/September2013/Oral-AntineoplasticsImproving-Adherence-by-Managing-Patients-Expectations

Personal note: I do not think this will go into my personal portfolio. Although I gave it a lot of effort I feel as if my response was not the strongest it could have been.