Oncology Pharmacy Services at Kaiser Permanente Santa Clara Medical Center
Within the oncology service at Kaiser Permanente, the oncology pharmacist plays an integral part of patient care and safety.
- The services provided by the Pharmacy ranges from medication preparation to monitoring and treatment of chemotherapy-induced side effects.
- The pharmacist works hand-in-hand with both doctors and nurses to ensure patients are receiving optimal therapy with minimal side effects.
- Pharmacists are often involved in a combination of activities throughout the day. Their main roles include the preparation of chemotherapy medications for dispensing and monitoring of patients for chemotherapy induced side effects.
A pharmacist’s day on the dispensing side begins bright and early at 6 a.m. with the pharmacist and technicians preparing to make the chemotherapy medications.
- This is a process that requires a great deal of precision and attention to detail.
- Pharmacists make sure the correct medication is ordered on the appropriate day of treatment.
- They check labs to ensure that blood counts, liver function, kidney function and a variety of other labs are within the required ranges that allow for medication administration.
Because a mistake can be severely harmful, this process is repeated again by another pharmacist.
- Next the actual compounding (mixing) of the medication occurs.
- At this stage, pharmacy technicians prepare the medication and the pharmacist checks to verify the right quantity of chemotherapy medication is added to the appropriate IV bag.
- Once the medication has been made, the pharmacist verifies that it is properly labeled, packaged and sends it out for nurses to administer.
In addition to preparing medications for dispensing, the oncology pharmacist also monitors chemotherapy-induced side effects.
- Chemotherapy medications primarily work by attacking the rapidly reproducing cells in our body.
- In addition to working against cancer cell, these medications often cause harm to our cells.
- As such, several chemotherapy medications cause patients to experience nausea, vomiting and fatigue.
- There are various treatment options available for these side effects.
- The pharmacist’s role is to evaluate the patients need for treatment and determine the best regimen possible.
Additional oncology pharmacist roles:
- They will discuss with patients proper medication storage, usage and potential side effects.
- They often follow up with patients in regards to response to treatment and make adjustments as needed.
- Patients are often seen in the clinic prior to receiving chemotherapy treatment and are followed by phone thereafter.
The pharmacist is an integral part of the team in oncology. They make sure patients’ medications are made properly and that they are dispensed at the appropriate time. Additionally, pharmacists follow up with patients in regards to some of the side effects of chemotherapy. The pharmacist is always available to answer questions and works hand-in-hand with the rest of the medical team to ensure patients are receiving the best health care possible.
