January 12: National Pharmacists Day

National Pharmacists Day

It’s likely National Pharmacists Day was created by a pharmacology association, making it a great day to educate youngsters about the importance of the pharmacist. Pharmacists, known as Chemists in the Commonwealth of Nations, receive a university-level education to understand the biochemical mechanisms of drugs, drug uses, and their therapeutic roles, side effects, potential drug interactions, and monitoring parameters. Pharmacists are an integral part of patient care. If you visit your pharmacist today, say thank you and wish them well.

Pharmacist Facts & Trivia

  • A pharmacist named John Pemberton invented Coca-Cola.
  • Another pharmacist, Charles Alderton, invented Dr. Pepper.
  • And pharmacist Caleb D. Bradham invented Pepsi.
  • Detroit pharmacist James Vernor created Vernor’s Ginger Ale while Canadian pharmacist John McLaughlin created Canada Dry.
  • The first licensed pharmacist, Louis Dufilho Jr., set up shop in the French Quarter in the early 1800s. (Prior to then, you didn’t need a license.)
  • Benjamin Franklin was a pharmacist.
  • Agatha Christie was a pharmacy technician (a pharmacist assistant).
  • Joseph Swan, inventor of the incandescent light bulb, was also a pharmacist.

The oldest listing for this day shows it as Pharmacists Day to be celebrated on the second Thursday of the month. But at some point, “national” was tacked on, and it became a fixed date on January 12th.

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⇴ image from Rhoda Baer, wikipedia, public domain

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