The pharmacist's professional identity: Preventing, identifying, and managing medication therapy problems as the medication specialist

• Published in: JAACP : Journal of the American College of Clinical Pharmacy Vol. 4; no. 12; pp. 1564 - 1571
• Main Authors: Nelson, Nicholas R., Armistead, Lori T., Blanchard, Carrie M., Rhoney, Denise H.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Hoboken, USA John Wiley & Sons, Inc 01.12.2021
• Subjects: medication therapy problems; pharmacist; professional identity
• ISSN: 2574-9870; 2574-9870
• DOI: 10.1002/jac5.1538

Pharmacy has long struggled to embrace a unified professional identity despite many leaders calling for such. With societal and scientific evolutions, the functions of the pharmacist have changed over time, often assuming multiple identity discourses. Pharmacy has also been seen as a very heterogeneous profession with product‐ and patient‐focused practitioners, contributing to the lack of a unifying identity. This commentary argues that to advocate for and promote our profession we must confront the brutal facts and realize the true state of pharmacy practice. The fact is that all areas of pharmacy practice, both product‐ and patient‐focused, have always shared a central theme which is and has been the pharmacist's professional identity: the prevention, identification, and management of medication therapy problems and their root causes as the medication specialist. Fully embracing this professional identity will help the profession assume a clear and unique role on the healthcare team in optimizing patient care and allow for meaningful practice‐based research, grounded in theory, which will improve the education of currently practicing and future pharmacists. A firm professional identity will also allow for a seamless continuation between pharmacist education and practice across a lifetime, strengthening the pharmacy profession as a whole.