Pharmacy law differences between retail and clinical pharmacy
Pharmacy law differences between retail and clinical pharmacy
This blog will help Identify some different pharmacy laws used in retail and clinical pharmacy and featured in the MPJE.
Does the white coat have any limits? Being a pharmacist can place you in many different settings like an office, a hospital, or a retail pharmacy. There are even pharmacists that work for NASA! These different job roles can dictate which part of pharmacy law comes into play. Hospital pharmacy and community pharmacy have a lot of similarities and differences. In this blog, we will zoom in on some of the differences. These real-life scenarios will be helpful when taking the MPJE.
Some hospitals are large and may be home to more than one pharmacy. There may be an inpatient pharmacy that is responsible for filling the meditations and preparing IV’s for the patients. The inpatient pharmacy, usually located in a remote place in the hospital, is not open to the public. Inpatient pharmacists are responsible for checking orders that are made by the doctor, checking medications prepared by the technicians, checking medications when a patient arrives at the hospital, and when a patient is discharged, monitoring antibiotic therapy, and practicing antibiotic stewardship.
An ambulatory care pharmacy is located inside a hospital or clinic setting where patients can pick up their medication. Ambulatory pharmacies don’t fill inpatient medications but may offer services that include preparing a patient’s medications for discharge. This usually happens for the maternity floor when a new mother is discharged or for a same-day surgery patient. Ambulatory care pharmacists are responsible for checking the medications prepared by the technicians, recommending over the counter medications, being a liaison between a patient and their insurance company, and sometimes even managing diseases like diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, and high cholesterol. Sometimes ambulatory care pharmacists have collaborative practice agreements with the doctors who they work with. Collaborative practice agreements are an important term you will see on the MPJE.
Community or retail pharmacies can be located inside grocery stores, drug stores, or they may be an independent pharmacy. Community pharmacies are accessible and help serve the public with their pharmacy needs. Ambulatory care and community/retail pharmacy have a lot of similarities as it pertains to pharmacist responsibilities. Retail pharmacists are responsible for checking medication prepared by pharmacy technicians, recommending over the counter medications, being a liaison between the customer and their insurance company, and counseling patients.
HIPPA is a significant acronym in the world of health care and on the MPJE; know it love, become very acquainted with it, and, most importantly, practice it at all times! HIPPA stands for the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. Pharmacists have to do their best to protect patient health information no matter what setting they’re in. For example, when someone you know is admitted to a hospital, you cannot pull up their chart to see why they are there or check any personal or health information unless you are involved in their treatment. If you do so, this violates HIPPA. In community/retail pharmacy, patient privacy is critical; for example, if the technician and pharmacist talk about a patient’s medications or disease state and another patient is within ears-reach and overhears this information, this is a violation of HIPPA. In a community/retail and hospital setting a pharmacist may be approached and asked by a drug company to give out patient information. If the pharmacist provides any patient information this too is a violation of HIPPA.
When practicing pharmacy, whether it be in a hospital or retail/community setting, following state and federal pharmacy law is fundamental. If there is something that you do not recall, you can always look the information up, and or phone/consult a friend pharmacist. Important things to remember for the MPJE are the laws on refilling prescriptions, especially if you will be working in a retail setting. For hospital pharmacists, it is key to be aware of your surroundings and to make sure that you do not use patient identifiers in relaxed common areas like the cafeteria and nurses station when other patients are in ears-reach. Remember no peeking, unless you are directly part of the patient’s healthcare team.
Below are some free MPJE style questions to test your learning from this article
Question 1.
Your 20-year-old cousin checks in into a hospital for a ruptured appendix, and your aunt would like you, the pharmacist to look in his chart to see what kind of antibiotics he is on. You have access to his records, but you are not a direct part of his healthcare team, and you don’t even work on the unit that he is on, if you open his chart this is a direct violation of:
A. HIPPA
B. NASA
C. CDC
D. Human rights
E. Autonomy
Question 2
You landed a great job at a retail pharmacy with lots of perks. However, you are not registered with the DEA. Which DEA form do pharmacists need to complete to register when working in a registered establishment?
A. Form 224
B. The registered establishment form
C. No form
D. Form 106
E. Form 41
Question 3.
What is an agreement called between a doctor and a pharmacist that allows the pharmacist to practice outside of their normal “scope of practice”, but in line with their training and education?
A. A written agreement
B. Doctor and pharmacist pact
C. Collaborative practice agreement
D. Prescriptive authority
E. Formulary agreement
Answer to question 1
A. HIPPA
This would be a direct violation of HIPPA (Health Insurance Liability Act)
Answer to question 2
C. No form
Pharmacists are not required to register when working in a registered establishment.
Answer to question 3
C. Collaborative practice agreement
Taking practice MPJE®/NAPLEX® exams is key to passing the board exams on the first try. Practice exams:
1. Expose you to time constraints and help you build mental stamina
2. Expose you to different questions (K-type, select all, etc.)
3. Expose you to random topics with various difficulties
4. Expose you to new answer choices
5. Help demystify the exams and ease test anxiety
PassRXnow offers MPJE practice content for 15+ states and 600+ NAPLEX questions covering clinical, patient profile, calculations, and top 200 generics/brand name drugs. All NAPLEX and MPJE practice exams have answers, explanations, and references. 1000’s of questions, all updated frequently.
You can avoid the impact of failing the NAPLEX / MPJE by doing more practice exams. Check out our offerings. For transparency, you can see the last update date for each course at the top of the course page in the links below. Content is updated regularly.
MPJE – click here for the latest States (if you don’t see your state MPJE reference below)
Washington MPJE | Michigan MPJE | Pennsylvania MPJE | Massachusetts MPJE| Florida MPJE | New York MPJE | Tennessee MPJE | Illinois MPJE | Ohio MPJE | Texas MPJE | Georgia MPJE | Federal pharmacy law | Advanced MPJE covering USP <800>, Central fill, and more
New states are constantly added. Click here to see the latest MPJE for all states.
NAPLEX - click here for the NAPLEX offerings
NAPLEX practice| NAPLEX & MPJE Essentials
About the author
Dr. Keneshia Berkley is a senior clinical pharmacist who works in MTM and clinical pharmacy. What she loves most about pharmacy is the encouragement and power that she can give back to the patient with each interaction. Dr. Berkley believes that while you may not be able to cure your patient, you can still make a direct impact in their lives by providing a smile, a kind ear, and being empathetic. A patient may not remember your name, but they will remember how you treat them. So, go out there, be great and, most importantly, show the world what pharmacists are made of!