April 2008
South Dakota State Board of Pharmacy
4305 S Louise Ave, Suite 104, Sioux Falls, SD 57106
NEW REGISTERED PHARMACISTS
The following candidates recently met licensure requirements and were registered as pharmacists in South Dakota: Molly McDaniel, Misti Slack and Mark Elhardt.
PHARMACY LICENSES
New pharmacy licenses were recently issued to Judy Waldman, Eureka Pharmacy and Gift Shop dba Crissman Drug, Ipswich, (change of ownership); Curtis Rising, Medicine Shoppe Advanced Care Pharmacy, Rapid City; Trent Merkwan, Avera McKennan dba Hand County Memorial Hospital, Miller (change of ownership); Wade Johnson, Family Thrift Center #254, Rapid City (change of ownership).
NEW INSPECTOR JOINS STAFF
Randy Jones has joined the staff as one of our Pharmacy Inspectors. He graduated from SDSU College of Pharmacy in 1987. Randy has a broad understanding of pharmacy practice gained from experience in a variety of settings - retail pharmacy (Shopko); long term care pharmacy (PharMerica); mail order pharmacy (Cigna Tel-Drug and AmeriPharm); and veterinary pharmacy (VetPharm). He will conduct inspections throughout the state but will work primarily in central and eastern South Dakota. His hobbies include watching / attending football, baseball and basketball games. He also enjoys camping, hunting and the outdoors in general. Randy has two daughters; Mattie 19, and Samantha 16.
MULTIPLE SCHEDULE II PRESCRIPTIONS
Effective December 19, 2007, DEA released a new rule amendment to Title 21 Code of Federal Regulations Part 1306 authorizing prescribers to provide individual patients with multiple prescriptions for the same Schedule II controlled substance.
An individual practitioner may issue multiple prescriptions authorizing the patient to receive a total of up to a 90-day supply of a Schedule II controlled substance provided the following conditions are met:
REFILLING CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES: WHEN IS IT TOO EARLY?
We have all seen news reports about the abuse of many controlled substances (CS). Many of these have become popular “street drugs”. Unfortunately, some “patients” engage in drug diversion, and seek out many different CS through legitimate and illicit sources. One way this is accomplished is for them to present requests for refills long before the previous dispensation should have been consumed (requests for early refills).
The rise in abuse of Schedule III and IV CS is due in large part to the stricter controls in place for Schedule II drugs, especially the fact that Schedule II CS cannot be refilled. Because these CIII and CIV substances are also capable of being abused, and are more readily available, one way the law intervenes is to require that a prescription only be issued for a legitimate medical purpose. The responsibility for proper prescribing and dispensing begins with the prescribing practitioner. Corresponding responsibility and liability rests with the pharmacist who fills the prescription.
There is no easy guideline to determine how soon is too early to present a request for a refill. People have emergencies, go on extended vacations, lose medications, waste doses, and so forth. Therefore, a pharmacist must use his or her professional judgment, informed by the patient record and by gleaning information about the specific situation at hand, when “early” refills are requested. Sometimes “early” is okay. When the request for an “early” refill is repeated the pharmacy professional must investigate and use good judgment. A written policy and procedure that includes proper documentation is recommended. Failure to apply your professional judgment and document your findings may jeopardize your license and your liability.
REFRIGERATOR TEMPERATURES
The Board’s inspectors encounter interesting situations during their on-site pharmacy inspections. One of the routine checks on the inspector’s list is the refrigerator. Pharmacists have a responsibility to assure that every prescription is dispensed with “only drugs of good quality” (ARSD 20:51:16:03). Proper storage of items that require refrigeration is essential to the quality of the product. The Board expects every pharmacy to perform daily temperature checks and to maintain temperature logs.
Our rules also state that the “pharmacy shall comply with all public health regulations”. A well established standard is that food products must not be stored in any refrigerator where drugs are stored. This practice can lead to harmful contamination of the drugs. Our inspectors have found a variety of unacceptable items in pharmacy refrigerators – raw hamburger, cheese dip, fried chicken, salad dressing, etc.
Please make sure that your pharmacy is compliant with these important rules and standards of care.
PHARMACISTS – BANK CONTINUING EDUCATION HOURS
Pharmacist license renewal time will be here sooner than you think. To avoid a last-minute panic finding continuing education certificates, you can accumulate and enter the hours on the board’s renewal site.
To log in use the same method as renewing your license:
The SD Pharmacists Association also offers a CE Bank on their web site www.sdpha.org as a means of managing your hours (these hours would need to be re-entered on the board site at renewal time).
BOARD OF PHARMACY STAFF DIRECTORY
Office Phone 605-362-2737 FAX 605-362-2738
Ron Huether, Executive Secretary ronald.huether@state.sd.us
Rene Hixon, Senior Secretary rene.hixon@state.sd.us
Kim Kocmick-Burden, Secretary kimberly.kocmick-burden@state.sd.us
Earl McKinstry, Pharmacy Inspector earlm@dishmail.net
Randy Jones, Pharmacy Inspector randy.jones@state.sd.us
Board of Pharmacy Website
www.pharmacy.sd.gov
