Pharmacy in interprofessional education: a course on images of the health professions in the media.

For the pharmacist or pharmacy student, who may not appear frequently on the hospital floor, lack of interaction with other health professionals may have unfortunate consequences. At a time when pharmacy is asserting its clinical role, isolation can be particularly counterproductive. Pharmacy students will daily encounter future colleagues who characterize (or caricature) the pharmacist as a "pill counter," who works in a lost corner of a chain "drugstore" or in the dingy basement of a hospital. Such images, drawn from popular media as well as professional stereotypes, impede the integration of the pharmacist into the health care team in the eyes of both the public and other health professionals. Images of the Health Professions in the Media was designed to study popular stereotypes of several health professions in an interprofessional setting, with the goals of challenging stereotypes, fostering team attitudes among future health professionals, and creating an awareness in students of the power of the media in shaping the public images of the health professions.