[The expected role of community pharmacist in society]

With recent advances in the separation of dispensing and prescribing drugs (Bungyo), the social role of community pharmacists has expanded. Therefore we carried out a questionnaire survey on the "image of community pharmacists" among patients/the public, physicians, and community pharmacists. The understanding of their role by community pharmacists differed slightly from that by patients/the public or physicians. Better mutual understanding among the three parties is necessary for smooth communication. Dispensing and handing over drugs to patients are not the only tasks required of community pharmacists. Evaluation of records of telephone drug counseling by the Japan Pharmaceutical Association revealed that many callers desired not only drug information but also the opinions and judgments of pharmacists. Providing drug information is an important task for community pharmacists. In addition, counseling on anxiety and worries about health may be necessary. Bungyo has also affected drug distribution. In this field, the role of community pharmacists in providing drug information may markedly change in the future.