Good Evening and Happy April!
Even though it remains relatively cold here in Chicago, I know spring is here by the number of consecutive days of rain I have seen. I took advantage of one of those many rainy days to complete my first ASHP re-certification module for BCPS:
Pharmacotherapy Intensive Study A - Pharmacogenomics.
I remember learning a little about pharmacogenomics in pharmacy school, mainly in regards to the use of warfarin and a few chemotherapy agents. However, since those few therapeutic lectures, I rarely gave this area much thought. The re-certification module provided a good refresher on what pharmacogenomics is, the role a pharmacist can (and should) play, some specific examples of the impact genetic testing can have on pharmacotherapy selection, and some controversies surrounding the practice.
One thing that most stuck out to me was a question asked by the presenter: if a patient came to you with results of CYP2C9 genetic test (showing 2C9*3 allele) and a prescription for 10mg of warfarin, what would you do? I, along with most of the participating audience, responded that we would recommend decreasing the dose of warfarin since the patient likely would require a lower dose in order to have a therapeutic INR. This reminded me and the audience that despite the controversies surrounding pharmacogenetic testing, if we had the information available to us we would likely change therapy empirically.
This re-certification course re-energized me about the future of medicine and the possibilities that it holds, especially in this area. The potential for personalized medicine is exciting, and pharmacists (as the pharmacology experts) need to take take ownership of this area! I look forward to continuing to learn more about the impact pharmacogenetics testing can have on specific pharmacotherapy selection.
#ContinuingEducation #ASHPCerts #Accreditation