Pharmacy Message Marketing Initiative: First Quarter
Pharmacy Home
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That’s My Pharmacist: Being There to Answer My Questions
Patient Vignette (for ad)
My pharmacist is always there for me, helping me to understand my conditions and how to get well.
He always makes sure that all of my questions are answered and that I am receiving the most from
my medication, even over-the-counter drugs and herbal supplements. That’s why he’s my
pharmacist: he knows me, he knows my medication and he knows how to help me become healthy
and stay healthy.
That’s My Pharmacist: Being There to Answer My Questions
Radio Copy
My pharmacist is always there for me, helping me to understand my conditions and how to get well.
When I go to pick up a prescription, I get more than just my medication. My pharmacist makes sure
I am armed with information about my therapy and that I will get the most from my medicine, even
the over-the-counter drugs and herbal supplements I take. He helps protect me from any drug
interactions or duplications and answers all my questions about how to get well. I depend on my
pharmacist because he knows me, he knows my medication and he knows how to help me become
healthy and stay healthy.
That’s My Pharmacist: Being There to Answer My Questions
Pharmacy Home Letters to the Editor
160 Words
Everyone is looking to save money when it comes to their prescription medications. But what many
people don’t realize is that shopping from pharmacy to pharmacy for the best drug prices might save
a dollar or two, but puts their health at risk.
The pharmacist’s job is to ensure you understand how to take your medications and to warn you of
potentially negative side effects or dangerous drug interactions. When patients shop around and
obtain their prescriptions from several different pharmacies, it becomes more difficult for any of the
pharmacists to know what other medications you are taking.
For example, if you purchased a prescription for warfarin at one pharmacy and ibuprofen at another
pharmacy without notifying either pharmacy, neither pharmacist would be able to warn you of the
risk of serious bleeding when the two are taken together.
Your local pharmacist knows you and your medication. Invest in this relationship to guarantee your
safety when taking prescription medications.
133 Words
In a down economy, it’s very tempting to shop around from pharmacy to pharmacy for the best
deals on prescription medications. What many people don’t realize is that using several pharmacies
in hopes of saving a buck or two can be hazardous to one’s health.
Part of your pharmacist’s job is to know all of the medications a patient is taking – both prescription
and over-the-counter – so that he or she can protect you from dangerous or even potentially lifethreatening drug interactions. Going to a single pharmacist also allows the pharmacist to watch for
unnecessary or duplicate medications, and therefore save you money.
So rather than shopping from pharmacy to pharmacy to save money, talk with your local pharmacist
about all of your medications. You’ll be safer and save time and money.
Press Release Ideas
 Use a themed month idea with a focus on a particular disease state as an angle to highlight
how pharmacists are integral in treating that disease, for example, May is Allergy and Asthma
Awareness Month. Use the press release to give helpful tips on treating allergy symptoms
with over-the-counter medicines and what questions to ask a pharmacist about those
treatments in order to avoid medication interactions.
 With the focus being on the pharmacy home, this may be a time to talk with local reporters
about the impact of mandatory mail order on community pharmacies. If you have specific
statistics on pharmacy closings for the previous year and the economic impact those are
newsworthy angles to work with media outlets.
Media Tip
 Sometimes a press release isn’t always the best method for getting out your message. For a
topic like the pharmacy home and developing a relationship with a pharmacist, consider
writing a viewpoint column for your local newspaper. Include specific patient examples, or
even better, enlist a patient to write a column about how asking questions of the pharmacist
and depending on their expertise had a tremendous impact on that person’s health and wellbeing.