Forest Health Medical Center

General Acute Care Hospital

An acute general hospital is an institution whose primary function is to provide inpatient diagnostic and therapeutic services for a variety of medical conditions, both surgical and non-surgical, to a wide population group. The hospital treats patients in an acute phase of illness or injury, characterized by a single episode or a fairly short duration, from which the patient returns to his or her normal or previous level of activity.

Pharmacy

A facility used by pharmacists for the compounding and dispensing of medicinal preparations and other associated professional and administrative services. A pharmacy is a facility whose primary function is to store, prepare and legally dispense prescription drugs under the professional supervision of a licensed pharmacist. It meets any licensing or certification standards set forth by the jurisdiction where it is located.

Compounding Pharmacy

A pharmacy that specializes in the preparation of components into a drug preparation as the result of a Practitioner's Prescription Drug Order or initiative based on the Practitioner/Patient/Pharmacist relationship in the course of professional practice. A compounding pharmacy utilizes specialized equipment and specially designed facilities necessary to meet the legal and quality requirements of its scope of compounding practice.

Institutional Pharmacy

A pharmacy in a hospital (inpatient) or institution used by pharmacists for the compounding and delivery of medicinal preparations to be administered to the patient by nursing or other authorized personnel. Institutional Pharmacies also counsel patients and caregivers; administer vaccinations; and provide other professional services associated with pharmaceutical care such as health screenings, consultative services with other health care providers, collaborative practice, disease state management, and education classes.

Specialty Pharmacy

A pharmacy that dispenses generally low volume and high cost medicinal preparations to patients who are undergoing intensive therapies for illnesses that are generally chronic, complex and potentially life threatening. Often these therapies require specialized delivery and administration.