COMPOUNDING PHARMACISTS PLAY KEY ROLE IN VETERINARY PRACTICE

Compounding pharmacists not only provide an essential service to their human patients, but also play a critical role in enhancing animal health, according to a new survey of the nation's veterinarians.

Having access to compounded medications is "extremely important" to 80% of the veterinarians who participated in the poll, whereas the rest called access to compounded animal drugs "important" to their practice.

According to the researchers for Wedgewood Pharmacy, who conducted the poll of nearly 300 veterinary practices, the survey results "reaffirmed the critical role that high-quality compounding pharmacies play in modern veterinary practice."

Among the key findings were the following:

• Four out of 10 veterinarians prescribe compounded medications every week, and 31% prescribe them every day

• Approximately 94% of the respondents said that "product consistency" ranks among the most important factors in choosing a compounding pharmacy

• Over half of the veterinarians said that access to pharmacists for consultations was important in selecting a pharmacy