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To put it simply, compounding is
the process of mixing
medications by a pharmacist or
physician to meet the unique
needs of an individual. The
ability to compound medications
gives the patient a much wider
scope of prescription medication
strengths and forms.
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If a patient cannot take oral
pain medication, a pharmacist can
compound a prescription-strength
topical pain cream.
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If a child needs their
medication in a sucker, a
pharmacist can compound it.
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If a patient is allergic to
aspirin, the pharmacist can
compound a medication without
aspirin.
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If there is a medication that is
too strong for a patient, the
pharmacist can compound the
prescription at lower dosages.
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If a patient is on hormone
therapy, the pharmacist can
tailor the medication to meet
the hormone requirements of the
patient.
When you are prescribed a
generic or name-brand drug, the
dosage and form are very
limited. A compounding pharmacy
provides the valuable service to
the community of tailoring
prescriptions.
"In its traditional form,
pharmacy compounding is a vital
service that helps many people,
including those who are allergic
to inactive ingredients in
FDA-approved medicines, and
others who need medications that
are not available commercially,"
says Kathleen Anderson, Pharm.D,
Deputy Director of the Division
of New Drugs and Labeling
Compliance in FDA's Center for
Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER).
How the process works:
A prescription for compounded
medication is generated the same
way as any other normal
(non-compounded) prescriptions,
by visiting the doctor. However,
a patient never directly
receives a prescription for a
compounded medication from the
physician unless they ask for
it. The prescription is faxed
directly from the physician’s
office to the compounding
pharmacy. Upon receiving the
prescription, the pharmacy must
call the patient to confirm the
patient wants the medication and
to collect insurance or payment
information. For this reason, it
is always important for the
patient to give the physician
the best phone numbers for the
pharmacy to reach the patient.
After confirmation of the
prescription, the medication will
be shipped right to the
patient’s door. The patient must
be present to sign for the
medication before it is
released. The pharmacy will call
the patient again to confirm
delivery of the package. At
any time a patient can call the
pharmacy to check the status of
the medication or to contact the
pharmacist.
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