Professional Values in Community and Public Health Pharmacy
Med Health Care and Philos (2011) 14:187–194 DOI 10.1007/s11019-010-9281-0
SCIENTIFIC CONTRIBUTION
Professional values in community and public health pharmacy
David Badcott
Published online: 29 August 2010 Ó Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2010
Abstract General practice (community) pharmacy as a healthcare profession is largely devoted to therapeutic treatment of individual patients whether in dispensing medically authorised prescriptions or by providing members of the public with over-the-counter advice and service for a variety of common ailments. Recently, community pharmacy has been identified as an untapped resource available to undertake important aspects of public health and in particular health promotion. In contrast to therapeutic treatment, public health primarily concerns the health of the entire population, rather than the health of individuals (Childress et al. in J Law Med Ethics 30:170–178, 2002). Thus, an important question for the profession is whether those moral and professional values that are appropriate to the therapeutic care of individual patients are relevant and adequate to support the additional public health role. Keywords Pharmacy ethics Á Pharmacy values Á Public health pharmacy
• • • •
Transformation of many key aspects of the traditional prescription dispensing service. Recognition of patient care as being central to the whole ethos of pharmacy practice. Introduction of pharmacist independent prescribers A revised and extended role for pharmacists in patientoriented medicines management and aspects of public health.
Introduction The profession of pharmacy in the United Kingdom (UK) has undergone and continues to experience fundamental changes in its practice. These changes can be summarised as:
D. Badcott (&) Centre for Applied Ethics, Cardiff University, Humanities Building, Colum Drive, Cardiff CF10 3EU, UK e-mail: badcottd@cf.ac.uk
The drivers for these changes are due in part to revisions generated
SCIENTIFIC CONTRIBUTION
Professional values in community and public health pharmacy
David Badcott
Published online: 29 August 2010 Ó Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2010
Abstract General practice (community) pharmacy as a healthcare profession is largely devoted to therapeutic treatment of individual patients whether in dispensing medically authorised prescriptions or by providing members of the public with over-the-counter advice and service for a variety of common ailments. Recently, community pharmacy has been identified as an untapped resource available to undertake important aspects of public health and in particular health promotion. In contrast to therapeutic treatment, public health primarily concerns the health of the entire population, rather than the health of individuals (Childress et al. in J Law Med Ethics 30:170–178, 2002). Thus, an important question for the profession is whether those moral and professional values that are appropriate to the therapeutic care of individual patients are relevant and adequate to support the additional public health role. Keywords Pharmacy ethics Á Pharmacy values Á Public health pharmacy
• • • •
Transformation of many key aspects of the traditional prescription dispensing service. Recognition of patient care as being central to the whole ethos of pharmacy practice. Introduction of pharmacist independent prescribers A revised and extended role for pharmacists in patientoriented medicines management and aspects of public health.
Introduction The profession of pharmacy in the United Kingdom (UK) has undergone and continues to experience fundamental changes in its practice. These changes can be summarised as:
D. Badcott (&) Centre for Applied Ethics, Cardiff University, Humanities Building, Colum Drive, Cardiff CF10 3EU, UK e-mail: badcottd@cf.ac.uk
The drivers for these changes are due in part to revisions generated
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