Category Archives: Pharmacy

The Canadian Press - ONLINE EDITION By: Maria Babbage, The Canadian Press Tuesday, Apr. 30, 2013 at 6:20 PM | Comments: 0 TORONTO - A pharmacy assistant at a small Ontario hospital discovered by accident that chemotherapy drugs administered to 1,200 cancer patients in two provinces were diluted, a legislative committee heard Tuesday. The problem was caught March 20 when a pharmacy assistant at the Peterborough Regional Health Centre doubled-checked the label of a bag containing a mixture of saline and the drug gemcitabine from Marchese Hospital Solutions. The assistant, who wants to remain anonymous, noticed that the label on the Marchese bag was different from the one from their previous supplier Baxter, said Laura Freeman, the chief financial officer of the 400-bed hospital. It was the first day the hospital was using the bags from Marchese, which is why they still had some left over from Baxter, she said. The assistant noticed that the Marchese label only listed the amount of the drug gemcitabine in the bag, not the final concentration of the drug per millilitre of saline. The Baxter label listed both, she said. The drug is a powder that must be mixed with saline before it's administered … Continue reading →

FLORENCE For three generations, Boyds Pharmacy has been dispensing pills and reassurance to area residents and their families. Its roots go deep. Our customers are very loyal. Some are from families that were customers in 1922, said L. Clark Boyd III, a pharmacist and scion of the family business. That was the year his grandfather opened the first Boyds on Front Street, not far from its present location, where they moved in 1953. In 2008, a total renovation and facelift brought it up to date and, today, it is the main store and the business headquarters of the five-pharmacy enterprise. Over time, the landscape of the pharmaceutical world has been rocked by change, especially for small, family-owned operations like Boyds. Even more than the competition from large, national chains, the exploding mail order business is a source of frustration. When it comes to CVS and Walgreens, I call it friendly competition, Boyd said. The mail order business is another story. They are stealing patients, he said. We have lost half our patients to mail order. I am penalized. To meet the challenges, the pharmacist is innovating, streamlining and offering new services once unheard of in a neighborhood drugstore. A clinic, … Continue reading →

CHICAGO, May 1, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --Positron Corporation (POSC) is pleased to announce the release of the PosiRx 3000-Series, its latest pharmacy automation systems. The PosiRx 3000-Series are the first systems to automate and encompass the complete compounding process, from generator elution to dose distribution, of multiple diagnostic SPECT agents in an environment engineered to be ISO Class 5 and USP 797 compliant. Designed for facilities dispensing as many as three hundred patient-specific doses per day, the PosiRx 3000-Series will benefit providers and patients by enabling unit dose radiopharmaceuticals to be prepared more cost effectively and accurately than previously possible. The PosiRx line of automation systems features DoseLink, Positron's state of the art proprietary software. Developed for precision and customer ease of use, DoseLink maximizes the functionality and efficiency of operating the PosiRx system through a robust and intuitive interface that can be operated from a variety of interfaces. Whether accessed from a desktop, tablet or smartphone, DoseLink empowers the user to control drug preparation and plan daily production, as well as store and retrieve data in a secure environment. Additionally, the operator may interact with Positron support personnel for assistance with any task in real time, across any platform. "The … Continue reading →

Story Created: May 1, 2013 at 6:27 PM CDT Story Updated: May 1, 2013 at 6:45 PM CDT According to officers, it did not take them long to get away with a lot of medication. Police said it likely took less than five minutes. "It's a quick grab for narcotics," said Brownsville Police Chief, Chris Lea. Brownsville police said the thieves broke into Dowling Pharmacy, and stole about 3,000 hydrocodone pills, and two pints of the liquid. "The hydrocodone tablets, they can be sold at street level for a value of anywhere from $10 to $25 a tablet," Lea said. "Drug dealers consider that an easy source of money, unfortunately." "A lot more than we can sell it for," said pharmacist Allen Primrose, who owns Main Street Pharmacy. Pharmacists said it is unfortunate, but they are not surprised. "Anybody that has a pharmacy's always concerned about theft and break-ins, but it's just part of our business, and part of life. We just have to deal with it," Primrose said. Read more here: Pharmacy Burglarized, Hydrocodone Taken … Continue reading →

Risk & Insurance and Healthcare Solutions convene a pharmacy benefit management roundtable discussion over breakfast in Atlanta. As workers' compensation insurance rates rise precipitously, risk managers and claims leaders across the country are looking for answers with an increasing sense of urgency. The cost of getting injured workers back to work, hampered by a national pain killer medication epidemic, has gotten the attention of more and more business executives and government officials. Participating in the roundtable were Danielle Lisenbey, the CEO of Atlanta-based TPA Broadspire, Dave Smith, divisional vice president, risk management for Family Dollar Stores, Stephen Festa, senior vice president and chief claims officer for Reno-based EMPLOYERS insurance company and David George, the CEO of Healthcare Solutions. The two-hour panel was moderated by Dan Reynolds, the editor-in-chief of Risk & Insurance. As those in attendance expressed their views over the two-hour breakfast meeting, several dynamics emerged as themes. One was that the landscape for managing this risk is in constant flux, as different stakeholders move either to contain costs or identify new revenue streams. The other was that those companies that seek to contain costs and provide a better health outcome for injured workers must improve the focus of … Continue reading →

ALBANY, NY--(Marketwired - Apr 29, 2013) - Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences President James J. Gozzo announced today that he will be stepping down as president of the College effective June 30, 2014. "This was a most difficult decision, but I have confidence that it is the right one, both for me and my family. It was made knowing that the College is in a strong position -- both academically and fiscally -- and I have no doubt that the faculty, staff, and administrators in place will ensure that ACPHS continues to be the great institution that it is," said President Gozzo. "I expect to remain fully active during the next year as we collectively work towards the full implementation of our strategic plan." "During the past 15 years, Jim has led ACPHS through a period of unprecedented growth, executing a vision for the institution that few thought was achievable. From the expansion of academic programs to the growth of the physical campus to the development of a burgeoning research program, Jim has transformed the College into a modern, forward looking institution. For those reasons and more, the Board was saddened to learn of his decision," said Herbert … Continue reading →

NEW YORK, April 30, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Reportlinker.com announces that a new market research report is available in its catalogue: Pharmacy Automation Systems Market - Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends And Forecast, 2012 - 2018 http://www.reportlinker.com/p01169087/Pharmacy-Automation-Systems-Market---Global-Industry-Analysis-Size-Share-Growth-Trends-And-Forecast-2012---2018.html#utm_source=prnewswire&utm_medium=pr&utm_campaign=Pharmacies_and_Drug_Stores This report provides an in-depth analysis and market forecast for the global pharmacy automation market for the period 2012 2018. The report provides details of the several pharmacy automation devices currently available in the market along with the impact of these machines on modern pharmacies in terms of efficiency, reduction in error and speed. The report also highlights the unique connection of pharmacy automation devices with a number of other markets such as the E-prescription market and its role in the growth of pharmacy automation. The scope of the report includes competitive analysis of major market segments based on end users, technology and of different regional markets such as Europe, North America, Asia-Pacific and the rest of the world. This regional analysis concluded that most developing regions are not yet ready to accept pharmacy automation technology since affordable human skill and low currency value still provides a cheaper work force as compared to mechanization. Along with this, the cost of devices and … Continue reading →

19th century medicine voodoo -- A Tour of the New Orleans Pharmacy Museum C EN invites viewers on a virtual tour of the New Orleans Pharmacy Museum, located in the heart of the French Quarter. This 19th century apothecary shop is f... By: CEN Online … Continue reading →

Driver rams Grandview pharmacy, steals cough syrup Police said a driver used a stolen van to crash through the front of a pharmacy in Grandview early Monday and stole cough syrup used in a popular party drink. By: kmbctv … Continue reading →

The morning after pill should be available to women under the medical card scheme, pharmacists have claimed. The morning after pill should be available to women under the medical card scheme, pharmacists have claimed. A survey by the Irish Pharmacy Union (IPU) found that 18 per cent of women with a medical card chose to get their emergency contraception from a pharmacy as opposed to getting it free on prescription from their GP. IPU vice-president Kathy Maher said pharmacists already offer seasonal flu vaccination services without charge to medical card patients so a service for the morning after pill should be put in place. It is important to stress that this medication is for emergencies only, Ms Maher said. Pharmacists offer a thorough confidential consultation with the patient before the medication can be provided. She added that women can get timely advice and treatment from community pharmacies since more and more are open throughout the weekend and late in the evening. Results from the survey were announced today ahead of the IPU National Pharmacy Conference in Maynooth, Co Kildare. Ms Maher said it was important to urge women to look after their sexual health and use precautions to avoid unwanted … Continue reading →