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…work gives satisfaction. What gives pharmacists satisfaction in the workforce? That depends on a number of factors.

David Lassen, chief clinical officer at Prime Therapeutics, discusses changes in store for the field of specialty pharmacy in the coming years. (video)

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services…released its latest forecasts for national health expenditures...2014, prescription drug spending growth was higher than the growth in total U.S. healthcare spending...the next 10 years,..drug spending is projected to closely track overall healthcare spending. By 2024,.. will spend about $560 billion annually on outpatient prescription drugs...the perceptions that drugs prices are "too high," outpatient prescription drugs will only account for about one of every 10 U.S. healthcare dollars....

What this Study Adds

• Our model systematically categorized components of pharmacist intervention in care transition programs. Study heterogeneity enabled a best evidence synthesis to elucidate effective components.
• This review revealed that multifaceted programs should combine medication reconciliation with active patient counseling and a clinical medication review. Care continuity can be secured by integrating pharmacists across settings and providing them with patients’ clinical background.
• Collaborating with other health care professionals is crucial to increase the effectiveness of pharmacist intervention.

Mary Jo Goolsby, EdD, MSN, NP-C, FAANP, FAAN, owner of the Institute for NP Excellence, discusses what DOT medical examiners provide to retail pharmacies. (video)

FDA released guidance… directed at companies that are considering registering with the agency as an outsourcing facility under…the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act… guidance is in response to questions the agency received from companies about which activities (e.g., drug compounding) would require a company to register as an outsourcing facility and, therefore, be subject to registration fees…

Drew Armstrong reports on the rising cost of drugs. He speaks on "Bloomberg Markets." (video)

A negative culture in the pharmacy can diminish morale…"People leave their manager; they don’t leave companies." If the leader of the pharmacy doesn’t try to change a negative culture, people will start leaving… For those who want to give a little time to see what happens, or need time to find a new job, here are some tips for dealing with a difficult work environment.

• Switch from an "I" focus to an "Other" focus
• Exercise
• Join a support group outside of work
• Try to be positive at work
• See the big picture

..In the midst of rapid expansion of medical knowledge...too few actually understand medical information well enough to improve their health…. US adults scored below the international average for literacy, numeracy, and problem solving in technology-rich environments… too many patients still have difficulty...such as taking the right medicine at the right time, properly self-managing diabetes, or correctly following hospital discharge instructions...

This report updates the 2014 recommendations of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices regarding the use of seasonal influenza vaccines. Updated information for the 2015–16 season includes

• antigenic composition of U.S. seasonal influenza vaccines;
• information on influenza vaccine products expected to be available for the 2015–16 season;
• an updated algorithm for determining the appropriate number of doses for children aged 6 months through 8 years; and
• recommendations for the use of live attenuated influenza vaccine and inactivated influenza vaccine when either is available,…