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AFSC 43P4, Staff
AFSC 43P3, Qualified
AFSC 43P1, Entry

Specialty Summary. Administers the pharmacy department. Acts as a consultant on drugs to the medical staff. Acts as supervisor for procuring, storing, manufacturing, distributing, controlling, and evaluating drugs. Instructs related health personnel in pharmacy matters. Researches administrative and scientific problems associated with pharmacy. Related DoD Occupational Group: 6H.

Duties and Responsibilities:

Administers the pharmacy activities. Plans, organizes, staffs, controls, and directs the pharmacy department according to established policies and procedures. Maintains the facilities of the department. Implements pharmacy and therapeutic committee decisions. Ensures maintenance of perpetual inventories on fully controlled substances. Establishes a drug distribution system yielding maximum pharmacy control over requisitioning, storing, and dispensing drugs.

Directs procurement, storage, manufacture, distribution, control, and evaluation of drugs. Formulates specifications for the quality and source of all drugs procured by the pharmacy. Supervises filling, labeling, and dispensing of all drug orders. Inspects stock supplies of drugs on all services; maintains an approved stock of antidotes and other emergency drugs. Oversees the manufacture of bulk compounded preparations if their procurement from commercial sources is not possible. Directs operation of the intravenous admixture program. Implements unit dose drug distribution systems. Maintains patient drug profiles for inpatients as well as outpatients when feasible.

Provides consultative services. Establishes a central repository of drug information. Communicates essential drug information to patients, attending physicians, nurses, and supportive personnel.

Serves in a teaching capacity. Cooperates in teaching courses to nurses interns, and others. Provides inservice training for medical, nursing, and pharmacy staffs.

Participates in research programs. Establishes a research unit within the pharmacy department. Promotes research related to hospital objectives. Promotes collaborative research.

Specialty Qualifications:

Knowledge. Knowledge is mandatory of drugs and their actions; pharmaceutical manufacturing programs; quality control and distribution control procedures; pharmaceutical research, teaching, and inservice training programs; and hospital pharmacy administration and management.

Education. For entry into this specialty, undergraduate academic specialization in pharmacy courses acceptable to the Surgeon General, HQ USAF, is mandatory.

Training. None.

Experience. For award of AFSC 43P3, a minimum of 24 months of experience is mandatory in pharmacy assignments.

Other. For award of AFSC 43P3, a state license to practice pharmacy is mandatory.

Specialty Shredouts:

None

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Above Information Derived from AFMAN 36-2105