Pharmacy Times 2008 OTC Products - (Page 8) Patients’ Needs Guide OTC Recommendations Ed Lamb Mr. Lamb is a freelance pharmacy writer living in Virginia Beach and president of Thorough Cursor Inc. of US adults commonly ask pharmacists about medications. An earlier survey found that 60% of consumers want pharmacists to advise them about OTCs.3 Asmaa Bazzi, PharmD, who manages a CVS/ pharmacy in Fort Myers, Florida, estimates that between 10 and 15 patients approach her each day for help with selecting OTCs. “A lot of the people come in because their family or friends told them that I could help,” Dr. Bazzi said. “Because I was able to answer all the questions for one person, they tell others that I can help them feel better.” Across the country, Tanya Scalise-Manoni, PharmD, a staff pharmacist at Target in American Fork, Utah, also consults with 10 to 20 patients each day regarding OTCs. A majority of Dr. ScaliseManoni’s patients are young parents, and she said, “All the time, I will have mothers come up to me and say, ‘I can’t find the yellow Triaminic [guaifenesin and phenylephrine]. My pediatrician told me I need to get the yellow Triaminic.’” According to Dr. Scalise-Manoni, “These kinds of openings are great, because they let me dig deeper into what the medication they are looking for is going to be used for. Maybe the yellow Triaminic is not what the kid needs if she already has a runny nose.” continued on page 10 t is always enlightening to pick up this annual supplement and learn which OTCs are most often recommended to patients by pharmacists. This article goes a little deeper to provide some insight into why certain products are recommended. The short answer is that pharmacists base their recommendations on a patient’s symptoms, current medications, past experiences, and economic situation. This is unsurprising, but also very beneficial for patients. I Trusted Medication Advisors Information about OTC medications abounds. A recent breakdown of ways patients can learn about products included packaging, friends or ST REC O M family, store signage, manufacturers’ Web sites, inCI M A store kiosks, online search engines, product review sites, and social networking sites.1 SINCE 1997 As empowering as this can be, individuals 8 w Ac h ie vem e n t A still very likely to turn to pharmacists when are deciding which OTC product is best for them or their child.2 In 2006, a survey revealed that 83% N EN • PH AR M D ED • M M AC I ST REC O ar PH AR PH AR d 8 Ac w h ie vem e n t A c h ie vem n t Adult eCough 8 ar A Aw ar d M PH AR M PH AR d ar Number of pharmacist recommendations per month: 1,792,980 ar d 20 d 0 M M AC I ST REC O M OTCs Pharmacists Recommend EN M EN D ED D ED 20 20 20 0 0 IS M M Delsym AC 45.8 M Robitussin 28.0 Mucinex 20.2 Tylenol Cough8 8 w Ac h ie vem e & A 2.2 A w n t Sore Throat A c h ie vem e n t AC REC O IS T M Product EN % Pharm Recs T REC O 0 Acne Preparations % Pharm Recs Product % Pharm Recs Product % Pharm Recs Product Benylin Dimetapp Vicks 44 Other 1.1 1.1 1.1 0.5 Clearasil Oxy Neutrogena Pan Oxyl Clean & Clear Persa Gel 19.4 17.4 16.7 16.0 9.7 6.9 Stridex Noxzema Other 4.9 2.1 6.9 EN OTC Supplement 2008 D ED D ED 20 0 Number of pharmacist recommendations per month: 332,640 8 Pharmacy Times
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