New Educational Video for Pharmacists Addresses Prescription Drug Abuse

Americans abuse prescription drugs more than cocaine, heroin, and hallucinogens combined, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. “Red Flags” encourages pharmacists to help combat this national problem by exercising their professional judgment to ensure the prescriptions they dispense were written for a legitimate medical purpose, and to act upon any unusual behavior they observe.

Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and various state pharmacy boards have described red flags as circumstances surrounding the presentation of a controlled substance prescription that should raise reasonable suspicion about the validity of that prescription. The video highlights a number of these potential warning signs, some which are not easy to spot, by weaving personal narratives with interactions between pharmacists and customers.