However, education on addiction provided to pharmacists is not satisfactory – they should have enough training to counsel effectively, and help prevent addiction. For instance, Dr. Lynn Lafferty, Pharm.D., a licensed pharmacist who is devoted to discovering the most effective way to endorse wellbeing, states a questionnaire indicates, “A majority of responding pharmacists (67.5%) reported participating in two hours or less of addiction/substance abuse education in pharmacy school” (Lafferty 3). More than half of pharmacists do not have enough knowledge to handle the complexities of addiction, and it is upsetting since addiction can happen to anyone on a psychoactive substance. Also, patient’s health is in pharmacists care when they dispense medication hence, they should be first to identify addictions. Therefore, additional training regarding the brain’s chemistry, counseling, and proper treatment would help solve prescription medication misuse, and prevent addiction – making taking opioids …show more content…
According to Andre Haruin, Pharm.D, a licensed pharmacist states, “The direct medical costs of prescription drug abuse are estimated to be over $72 billion each year. This estimate includes the costs of acute clinical management, lost work productivity, criminal justice procedures, and outpatient treatment centers” (Haruin, et. al, 2). The amount of money spent on addiction in the United States is tremendous since it is a problem that is preventable. Thus, spending on addiction education for professionals would help reduce those expenses over time – making communities safer and more