The life of a hospital pharmacist can often be a thankless job. One of the main reasons could be related to the fact that very often these interdisciplinary team members work behind the scenes, having only limited direct contact with patients. Despite this reality, the role pharmacists play in assisting patients reach their maximum health potential is enormous. The following text explores the duties, joys, and stressors a community pharmacist experiences on a daily basis. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay There were a number of items described by the pharmacist that the author found surprising. The pharmacist, for example, reported that her profession is now increasingly recognized as part of the interdisciplinary team. This was a good reminder to the author because it is often easy to forget the important role this particular discipline plays, particularly when a nurse's only interaction may be making a quick phone call or sending a fax to the pharmacy. The person interviewed has a lot to say about the obstacles he faces when working with Medicare, Medicaid and private insurance companies. Some challenges she lists along these lines include medications that require prior authorization, medications that are simply not covered by insurance, and medications that the patient cannot afford. He reports that these low-income patients who don't take their medications too often get sick again and are forced to return to the hospital. Another point that the author had not previously considered is that providers often do not consider costs when prescribing a drug. The person interviewed reports having been a pharmacist for 3.5 years. Although he reports that he has not experienced major changes in his role since the beginning of his career, he emphasizes that his experiences as a resident have been drastically different from what his role is today. He describes how there is now a greater push in the state for pharmacists to obtain provider status and considers it one of the positive aspects currently present in his profession. Regarding the challenges faced by this individual, it lists drug-drug interactions, drug-disease state interactions, orders that were not adequately tailored to renal dysfunction, prescriptions with inappropriate dose or duration, and polypharmacy. In particular, this pharmacist points out that many patients often take multiple medications, without any indication for their use. The person interviewed lists feelings of contribution and achievement as the most important aspect of his job. He also mentions how pharmacists generally enjoy the trust of patients, nurses and healthcare workers and how this relationship further increases his feeling of self-actualization. As a result of this interview, the author realized that while the roles of pharmacist and nurse are very different, they both share many of the same challenges and successes. This notion becomes evident when recognizing that the pharmacist had reported that he was expected to do more work with fewer resources. Indeed, this is likely an issue faced to some extent by all members of the interdisciplinary team, particularly when considering elements such as budget constraints and staff shortages. The pharmacist lists the additional challenge of clarifying orders with prescribers. He reports that it is often difficult to dispute an order without making the prescriber defensive. This is also an obstacle faced from time to time.