VETERINARY MEDICINE AND THE COMMUNITY PHARMACIST

Community pharmacists’ role in veterinary care has been growing and thus they should be prepared to provide the same quality of care to their veterinary patients as they do for their human patients. Veterinarians may provide prescriptions to be filled in a community pharmacy at the pet owner’s request or for medications that are not available at the veterinary clinic. While community pharmacists may be accustomed to filling veterinary prescriptions, they may not have the training necessary to check the accuracy of the prescribed medications or dosages or to counsel the pet’s owner about drug administration, side effects, or other issues specific to pet medications and delivery. Community pharmacists must also be familiar with the most common disease states and approved medications for animals as well as specific laws regarding veterinary prescribing and dispensing. The format for this continuing education session will be case-based. Each topic will begin with a patient case and therapeutic question which will be answered through examination of the most recent literature. Pharmacists will utilize information from this continuing education program to provide up- to-date, evidence-based OTC recommendations for their patients.

Learning Objectives
Upon completion of this activity, the participant should be able to:

Demonstrate working knowledge of regulations governing dispensing of medications to clients for animal patients.

Select and interpret appropriate veterinary drug information resources, given a veterinary drug information question.

Explain basic concepts of pharmacology and pharmacokinetics in different species. lawsuits

Counsel clients and veterinarians regarding use of prescription and nonprescription medications for companion animals.

Distinguish veterinary pharmacy as a specialized area within pharmacy practice and its impact on public health.​