Understanding Pharmacology Package - Softcover

Stuhan PharmD RPh, Mary Ann

9781585283866: Understanding Pharmacology Package

Softcover

ISBN 10: 158528386X ISBN 13: 9781585283866

Publisher: ASHP, 2013

Understanding Pharmacology for Pharmacy Technicians
This textbook provides a basis of pharmacology for pharmacy technicians. Throughout Understanding Pharmacology for Pharmacy Technicians, anatomy and physiology are discussed in relation to various disorders and associated pharmacotherapies to give the pharmacy technician students a context for how drugs work. Students using this text will learn the therapeutic effects of prescription medications, nonprescription medications, and alternative therapies commonly used to treat diseases affecting that system, and their adverse effects.

Workbook for Understanding Pharmacology for Pharmacy Technicians
This is a companion student workbook to accompany the textbook Understanding Pharmacology for Pharmacy Technicians. It includes learning objectives, pronunciations, and multiple learning activities. Answers to all matching, true/false, and short answer exercises are included in the book.

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About the Author:

Mary Ann Stuhan, PharmD, RPh

Mary Ann Stuhan, PharmD, has been Pharmacy Program Manager at Cuyahoga Community College in Cleveland, Ohio since 2002, where she directs an ASHP-accredited Technician Training Program and advises pre-pharmacy students. She received her BS in Pharmacy (Summa Cum Laude) at Duquesne University, and her PharmD at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center.

Dr. Stuhan began her pharmacy career as a technician, and has practiced professionally in a variety of settings, including retail, government, behavioral health, and teaching hospital. She was Director of Pharmacy at St. Michael Hospital in Cleveland, and continues to practice in long-term acute care at Kindred Hospital, Cleveland. She is a lecturer for the University of Colorado Denver School of Pharmacy NonTraditional PharmD Program.

Dr. Stuhan is past president of the PTCB Certification Council, and has held office on the executive board of the Pharmacy Technician Educators Council, which honored her with their Pharmacy Technician Educator of the Year Award in 2007. She is also an active member of the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, Cleveland Society of Health-System Pharmacists, Ohio Society of Health-System Pharamacists, and Ohio Pharmacists Association. She has been a peer-reviewer and written numerous articles and book reviews for the Journal of Pharmacy Technology. Her practice focuses are adverse drug reactions, anemia therapy, and antimicrobial stewardship.

Review:

Understanding Pharmacology for Pharmacy Technicians (with workbook)
By Mary Ann Stuhan

Canadian Journal of Hospital Pharmacy

Mary Ann Stuhan has compiled this set of pharmacology learning tools to help pharmacy technicians acquire knowledge to meet the accreditation standards of the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists and to aid in preparation for the US Pharmacy Technician Certification Board examination. Contributors and reviewers include clinical pharmacotherapy experts, pharmacy professors, pharmacy managers, and instructors and directors of pharmacy technician and technology programs.
Appropriately, the textbook opens with a chapter examining the practical and theoretical benefits of pharmacy technicians having an understanding of pharmacology.

The remainder of the textbook contains 34 chapters organized by body systems. In addition to explaining disease processes, goals of therapy, and the pharmacology of medications used to treat various health conditions, the text expands on terms and
definitions, includes tables outlining pharmacotherapy, and offers review questions and references at the end of each chapter. If an introduction to a particular body system is required to understand the pharmacology concepts, labelled colour pictures are provided to clarify the relevant anatomy and physiology. The text also provides clinical vignettes to help technicians understand the patient’s perspective. Safety alerts and practice points highlight clinical, administrative, and product selection pearls. The layout makes the textbook easy to read. The content is indexed, and the main text links well to the accompanying workbook. Instructor resources (PowerPoint slides) are also available; however, they offer none of the practical aspects or practice points from the textbook and workbook, and rarely include helpful images to engage the viewer. Despite the visually pleasing layout of both the textbook and the workbook, references to the policies of US drug regulatory authorities, as well as US brand names and manufacturers, limit the utility of this package for Canadian pharmacy technicians. In addition, many chapters provide anatomic, physiologic, or pharmacokinetic complexity that may exceed the needs or interests of technicians.

For example, the description of pharmacokinetic concepts includes complex equations requiring scientific calculators and an advanced proficiency in mathematics. Each chapter contains multiple cases and associated questions; however, the layout makes it difficult to link the questions to particular cases. Appropriate auxiliary labelling and suggestions for handling medications would increase the practicality and applicability for technicians in the workplace. This text and its associated workbook could serve as a resource for pharmacy technicians challenging licensing or qualifying examinations. It might also be useful for undergraduate students interested in exploring a career in pharmacy or as an addition to a pharmacy technician library, for reference or teaching purposes. Overall, this set of learning tools is best utilized together, as the workbook greatly increases relevance and practicality for a working pharmacy technician.

Susan Balagus
Practice Development Pharmacy Technician
Amy J Marriott, BSc, BScPharm, ACPR, PharmD
Practice Development Pharmacist
Winnipeg Regional Health Authority Pharmacy Program
Winnipeg, Manitoba
Competing interests: None declared.
(Susan Balagus Canadian Journal of Hospital Pharmacy 2014-01-02)

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