Shut Up and Fill the Prescription

Funky Dung has an excellent post entitled "Shut up and Fill the Prescription" which was written by a good friend of the blog host, a licensed pharmacist and a committed Catholic, who addresses the issue of refusing to dispense oral contraceptives.

Here are some excerpts from that post.

The groups that are pushing for pharmacists like me to "shut up and fill the prescription" argue that no matter what I believe about birth control, the decision occurs between a woman and her physician and I should not push my "morality" into the situation. I should not councel any patient about how this drug works (by the way, when was the last time your doctor told you how any drug works?) so that she can reconsider her decision, I should not warn her that birth control has been linked to an increased risk of breast cancer or can cause life-threatening thromboembolic events (blood clots) including stroke, I should not tell her about other side effects such as peripheral edema (swelling mainly of the ankles), severe nausea, decreased glucose tolerance (which can lead to diabetes), depression, anxiety, etc., and I most certainly should NOT be able to refuse to fill it. To me this is the same as forcing an OB/GYN to perform an abortion.

Why, then, does my profession exist? Why did I spend six years earning a doctorate in order to be told I play no part in the decision of what is appropriate drug therapy? Let me turn the situation around. Let's say a young woman is trying to get pregnant and succeeds but is not yet aware of the pregnancy. Unfortunately, she comes down with pneumonia. When she goes to the doctor, she tells him/her that she is allergic to penicillins. Said doctor prescribes doxycycline, but in haste forgets to ask if she may be pregnant and/or give the simple urine test to confirm such diagnosis. She brings me a prescription which is the right dose, duration and frequency, is perfectly legal, and seems to make sense for her infection. According to the above mentality, I should be required to fill it with no questions asked, since this treatment decision was already finalized between her and her physician. Indeed, I should not even bother mentioning whether the prescription was appropriate or not since it was legal - after all, that's all that counts, right? However, doxycycline is listed as pregnancy category D, meaning that it is known to be harmful to developing fetuses, and her baby is born with severe birth defects, or worse yet, does not survive. When her lawyer is making the list of health professionals to sue for malpractice, my name will be on it and I will have my license suspended if not revoked.

This is great stuff. You can learn more here.
-

Comments

Post a Comment

Comments are moderated and are published at the blogger's discretion.

Blog Archive

Show more

Popular posts from this blog

The Spirituality and Miracles of St. Clare of Assisi

Image
August 11 is the memorial of St. Clare, one of my favorite saints. She was the first woman to follow the life of radical poverty practiced by St. Francis of Assisi and is the co-founder of the Poor Clares. Although I am not a Franciscan, I have had Franciscan friends, clergy, and spiritual directors instruct me on the beauty of St. Clare's spirituality. I have also learned a great deal from reading about her over the years. Clare and Francis (2007) is a film which depicts the fascinating story of her dramatic conversion and surrender to the will of God. St. Clare is the patron saint of television. She is also the patron of eye disorders, embroiderers, good weather, and telephones. The Contemplative Life The Lady Clare was born into a noble family in Assisi in 1193 and was admired for her great beauty. When she heard Francis of Assisi preach his Lenten homilies at the Church of San Giorgio, she was captivated by his words. At age eighteen, she heard him say: "When the
Read more

Saint Michael de Sanctis: Patron of Cancer Patients

Image
Today is the feast of Saint Michael de Sanctis, also known as St. Michael of the Saints, a Spanish Discalced Trinitarian priest, the patron of cancer patients. Michael Argemir was born on September 29, 1591 at Vic, Catalonia, Spain. At age 6, he told his parents that he planned to become a monk and began modeling his life after Saint Francis of Assisi. Michael’s parents died when he was about ten years old. He then served as an apprentice with a local merchant. During this apprenticeship, he continued his fervent devotion to the Lord, especially to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. At the age of 12, he joined the Trinitarian Friars at Barcelona, taking his vows at St. Lambert’s monastery in Saragosa four years later.  Shortly afterwards, Michael expressed a desire to join the reformed group of Trinitarians and was given permission to do so. He went to the Novitiate at Madrid and, after studies at Seville and Salamanca, he was ordained a priest. Twice he served as Superior of the hou
Read more

Saint Gerard of Brogne: Patron of Abbots

Image
St. Gerard was born to a noble family in Staves, Belgium, in 895. He descended from a royal line of military men and at first felt a share in this call to arms. He trained for the army and, as a page of the count of Namur, he was sent on a special mission to the French court. There, Gerard realized that he was being called to the monastic life. He stayed in France and joined the Benedictines of St. Denis, abandoning his noble birthright and all his worldly possessions. He spent eleven years in France as a monk before becoming a priest. Following his ordination, he left for Belgium in order to found a new abbey on his own estate of Brogne. He was its abbot for twenty-two years and during that period was instrumental in introducing St. Benedict's Rule into numerous houses in Flanders, Lorraine and Champagne.He became known for his engaging sweetness of temper, his strict observance of the Rule of St. Benedict and for the replacement of lukewarm religious practice with true piety.
Read more