An open-enrollment, non-degree academic program in Radiopharmacy is available to students enrolled in the UNM College of Pharmacy. Upon the satisfactory completion of 24 semester credit-hours of prescribed course work, a certificate is awarded which specifies the primary areas of education and training received. The certificate program fulfills the didactic 200 hour instructional and the 500 hour supervised practical experiential requirements of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and Agreements State agencies for listing of an individual as an authorized nuclear pharmacist (ANP) on a radioactive materials license.
Click on the logo below to
visit Nuclear Education Online
Radiopharmacy is a specialized pharmaceutical care service that has been defined as follows:
Radiopharmacy is a patient-oriented service that embodies the scientific knowledge and professional judgment required to improve and promote health through assurance of the safe and efficacious use of radioactive drugs for diagnosis and therapy.
A radiopharmacist shall possess an active pharmacist license and shall have received didactic instruction (200 hours) and/or supervised professional experience in the practice of Nuclear Pharmacy (500 hours). (From APhA-APPM Section on Nuclear Pharmacy: Nuclear Pharmacy Practice Guidelines)
Facts about Radiopharmacy:
About 1,000 pharmacists practice Radiopharmacy within the USA.
There are more than 400 nuclear pharmacies within the USA.
Commercial centralized radiopharmacies represent about 350 of these, while the remaining are hospital or university based institutions.
Nuclear pharmacy was the first specialty practice area recognized by the American Pharmaceutical Association in 1978.
There are 501 Board Certified Nuclear Pharmacists included in the 4,614 pharmacists certified by the Board of Pharmaceutical Specialties. (2007)
Use of diagnostic radiopharmaceuticals is expected to increase 17 fold by the year 2005. Therapeutic use of radiopharmaceuticals is anticipated to increase even more.
The fastest growing area within nuclear pharmacy practice is PET imaging (positron emission tomography).
Radiopharmacy practice settings:
Are usually located in a city with a population greater than 100,000.
Are most likely found in areas of dense population (E.g. > 20 radiopharmacies in Florida; only one in Alaska).
Are not accessible by the public and do not involve third-party reimbursement.
Offer daily challenges to the professional radiopharmacist.
Provide compensation comparable to retail/hospital practice settings.
Additional Information:
For more information about the certificate in Radiopharmacy program at the University of New Mexico, College of Pharmacy, email: kwittststrom@salud.unm.edu
Click here to download curriculum information (pdf format) for the UNM College of Pharmacy Authorized Nuclear Pharmacist Education & Training Program
More Information may be found at
The Nuclear Pharmacy Website: http://nuclearpharmacy.uams.edu
Purdue Division of Nuclear Pharmacy: http://nuclear.pharmacy.purdue.edu
Nuclear Education Online: www.nuclearonline.org
Nuclear Pharmacy in Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_pharmacy
The
University of New Mexico’s Doctor of Pharmacy program is
accredited by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education,
20 North Clark Street, Suite 2500, Chicago, IL 60602-5109, TEL
(312) 664-3575 , FAX (312) 664-4652,
URL
http://www.acpe-accredit.org/
05/05/2008 09:18:56 AM -0600.