October is National Pharmacist Month - 13abc.com Toledo (OH) News, Weather and Sports

October is National Pharmacist Month. Pharmacists are of course a critical part of keeping us all healthy. The University of Toledo is one of 7 universities in Ohio with a College of Pharmacy.

Students at The University of Toledo's College of Pharmacy are not only concentrating on the students learning about medicine, interacting with patients is also a big component of their studies. That personal relationship is key in keeping you healthy and saving lives.

The University of Toledo College of Pharmacy has state-of-the-art facilities with chemical, compounding and dispensing labs. Assistant Professor Aaron Lengel says the focus in the classroom includes a lot more than just knowledge about medicine, "The biggest change is getting away from pharmacies just dispensing medicine to being a provider of clinical knowledge regarding medicines. The pharmacist is the drug expert."

Taking medication sounds simple, but it can be very complex, so talking to your pharmacist is critical. Pharmacists are of course trained to spot possible drug interactions and side effects as well as make sure patients are getting the most benefit out of the medicine they are taking. Chun Wong is a student in UT's College of Pharmacy, "We encourage people to talk to their pharmacist about their medications. 50% of people don't take their medicines right."

Sarah Milkovich is a student in UT's College of Pharmacy. She choose the field thanks in part to a teacher, "In high school I got interested in chemistry and one of my teachers inspired me to go into pharmacy because you work more with the chemical aspect of medicine giving the drug to a patient and seeing the effect on the body. Wanting to help people is very important too."

Of course one of the biggest questions about any profession is what are the job prospects? Students spend 6 years in UT's College of Pharmacy and Lengel says opportunities after graduation are expected to grow, "With health care reform and the potential for 30 million new insured patients there is an expectation that there will be a larger need for pharmacists in the future."

So the bottom line is that the goal of this month is teach you about the importance establishing a good repore with your pharmacist. Experts say that relationship can help lower health care costs as well as result in safer and more effective management of your prescription drugs.