What type of reference must be available in hard copy for community pharmacies?

In Minnesota, community pharmacies are required to maintain a certain standard of reference materials to support pharmacy practice and ensure patient safety. The requirement for having a pharmacotherapy reference in hard copy reflects the need for pharmacists to have immediate access to essential drug information, dosing guidelines, therapeutic recommendations, and comprehensive drug profiles that can be essential during patient consultations and clinical decision-making.

Having a hard copy of a pharmacotherapy reference ensures that pharmacists can easily access crucial information without relying solely on electronic resources, which may not always be available due to technical issues or connectivity problems. This foundational resource serves as a reliable guide for pharmacists to make informed medication therapy decisions, and it is important for ensuring the provision of quality care to patients.

While online drug interaction guides, general pharmacy law resources, and patient safety literature can also be valuable tools, they do not carry the same regulatory requirement for hard copy availability as pharmacotherapy references. This reinforces the importance of having critical medication-related information readily available in a physical format in the community pharmacy setting.