It seems that in almost every hospital that I've worked in, the nursing department and the pharmacy department can never seem to get along. I've worked with my share of NWAs, but I've also witnessed pharmacists treating nurses disrespectfully for no apparent reason. It's like cats and dogs.
Personally, I see the nurses as being the front line of patient care, so I go out of my way to put myself in their shoes, and get them their meds accurately and promptly. Not having, or not being able to find, their patient's medications is the biggest gripe they have about pharmacy.
If you ask me, it's easy to get along with nurses. Once you remove "ego" from the equation, most nurses will appreciate your efforts and give you their full support too. And let me tell you, A LOT of problems and errors can be prevented when nursing and pharmacy work as a team.
It works for me. But, don't just take my word for it. Listen to how some of the strange nurses at my facility describe me, while also trying to convince others pharmacists to follow suit -
A new study from researchers at Johns Hopkins University finds that nurse-pharmacist teams trained to find and resolve discrepancies between the drugs patients take at home and those they are given in the hospital could significantly reduce adverse drug interactions and the likelihood that patients will fail to take prescribed medicine.
ReplyDeleteSource: Study: Nurse-Pharmacist Collaborations Prevent Medication Errors