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The IPU (Irish Pharmacy Union) has reacted angrily to claims made in a statement about Community Pharmacists issued by the IMO (Irish Medical Organisation) this afternoon, calling it an ‘unprecedented and unfounded attack on the pharmacy profession’…The IMO claim, ‘that there is a risk to patient’s health and safety if pharmacists are given permission to expand their role into areas which are more properly undertaken by doctors’ goes against international evidence that clearly shows the benefits of expanding the role of pharmacists in areas such as providing treatment for minor ailments and vaccination services…Various GP organisations have pointed out that general practice in Ireland currently faces a manpower crisis, which they claim will be worsened by the expansion of free GP care. In England, Scotland and Canada, where demand for GP services exceeds the available capacity, the unique skills and expertise of pharmacists have been used to enhance access to healthcare, generating considerable benefits to both patients and the State...

Today an oncologist-policy-maker-and-medical-ethicist reminds us that, in effect, we’re all paying for the sky-high price of new drugs. Which begs the question, if patients – or society – can’t afford the cancer treatments we’ve already got, why search for new ones?...bottom line: Precision medicine will help cancer patients. Already it’s a practice-changer, an oncology life-saver. So far, precision medicine has advanced care, and improved survival…it will take time, years, for physicians (and machines) to learn how best to give precise, targeted cancer treatments in combinations at the least toxic, optimized and effective doses for each patient. Doctors haven’t yet invented most of the “recipes” for good-quality PM, and are still searching for better ingredients (drugs)…Precision Medicine will emerge as a positive industry encompassing science, informatics and health care delivery. It makes no sense to keep science – or precision – out of clinics. Rather, science will, or should, become increasingly relevant to clinical practice…

Michael Zeglinski, vice president of Specialty Pharmacy Operations at BriovaRx, discusses the alignment between specialty pharmacies and ACOs.

Interview with Alan G. Rosenbloom, President and CEO of Senior Care Pharmacy Coalition about the Avalere Health Study: Long Term Care Pharmacy Sector Plays Key, Growing Role in U.S. Seniors’ Care as New Payment, Delivery Models Gain Prevalence in the industry.  (podcast 40:55min)

Controversy surrounding drug pricing has reached an all-time high…So what's a drugmaker to do? Take a hard look at the data…Higher prices often attract lower-cost competitors and eliminate the short-term price increase benefit…public backlash to price hikes can trigger executive firings and other actions that impact the market…"While price hikes often represent both the recouping of historical investments and funding investments in new research to develop better treatments, companies should not descend into opportunistic 'price gouging,"…Leveraging pricing data can make a big difference in helping drugmakers stay abreast of the competition, especially for companies with off-patent products…Companies can use pricing data to gauge threats from generics or biosimilars, and identify trends in therapeutic areas or even specific indications. They can borrow from rivals' price-negotiation strategies to make the best case for their own meds. "If companies are able to actively and effectively analyze the trends and see how the market reacts, they'll be in a lot better position moving forward,"…

Beverly Schaefer, RPh, of Katterman's Sand Point Pharmacy in Seattle, Washington, talks about the benefits of having a travel section in a pharmacy.

As the heath care landscape continues to change, pharmacy technicians have been increasingly holding leadership roles on their pharmacy teams…Yet the task of managing a pharmacy can prove daunting to even the most experienced tech, as many technician training programs don’t necessarily prepare their students for pharmacy management…Although their targeted audience was consultant pharmacists, they provided the following tips for all pharmacy workers—including technicians—who are looking for ways to better manage their team.

1. Understand the Difference Between Management and Leadership
2. Identify Your Leadership Skills and Style
3. Observe the Group Dynamic
4. Identify Each Employee’s Motivation
5. Improve Communication
6. Set Goals
7. Provide and Be Open to Feedback
8. Look to Your Leaders

Supreme Court is weighing a request from Allergan to rule on whether drug companies can pull a medication from the market as generic competition looms in order to force patients to switch to new versions of the drug…The move, which may hinge on antitrust laws, will be closely watched by the pharmaceutical industry…Allergan’s request follows a heated battle between the drug maker and New York Attorney General...over a tactic known variously as product-hopping or forced switching, which involves pushing consumers from one product to another (Namenda IR to Namenda XR). A federal appeals court earlier this year ruled that a switch Allergan had planned would harm consumers.

‘Watson can help us ensure we’ve left no stone unturned in our search to diagnose and cure these rare diseases.’…IBM Watson and Boston Children's Hospital are taking on rare children's diseases that are hard to diagnose and treat. First up is a rare form of kidney disease…Their first project will focus on kidney disease. Watson will analyze the massive volumes of scientific literature and clinical databases on the Watson Health Cloud to match genetic mutations to diseases and help uncover insights that could help clinicians identify treatment options…IBM has been developing Watson's ability to analyze genomic data in collaboration with leading cancer centers around the world. The new project with Boston Children's represents the first time this technology will be applied to help clinicians efficiently identify possible options for rare disease diagnosis and treatment.

Ken Whittemore Jr, Surescript's senior vice president of professional and regulatory affairs, shares information on the current and future estimates of e-prescribing use.