Oath of a Pharmacist

pharmacist Jul 01, 2021

Why do I advocate for psychedelic therapies?

Because I took an Oath.

When I became a pharmacist, as well as biannually at white coat ceremonies and during graduation time while I worked in academia, I took the Oath of a Pharmacist.
 
 
 
 
I always loved the Oath as I felt it to be a guiding beacon to the way persons within the profession of pharmacy should conduct themselves.
 
It has certainly functioned that way for me.
 
One of the reasons I advocate for psychedelic therapies is that I strongly believe it would be in violation of the Oath if I didn’t.
 
How so?
 
The Oath explicitly states that “I will embrace and advocate changes that improve patient care”. Given the consistent ground-breaking clinical data demonstrating profound benefits in persons that do not respond to usual treatments it would be out of integrity to the Oath to remain silent about the therapeutic potential of psychedelic therapies.
 
It also mentions that I will use my “knowledge, experience, and skills to the best of my ability” to “assure optimal outcomes for patients” as well as “prepare the next generation of pharmacists”. These are the precise goals of the clinical pharmacy services I provide to persons interested in psychedelic therapies and educational membership, resources, and support services in psychedelic pharmacy that I have made available for today’s students and tomorrow’s professionals.
 
I hold myself to the “highest moral, ethical, and legal principles” possible. It is truly unfortunate that legal principles are completely incongruent with ethical and moral principles when it comes to the way drugs are regulated (see embracing and advocating change). In essence, the prohibition of drugs is immoral and unethical given the data we have demonstrating how harmful it has been as a policy and any evidence-based healthcare provider that has got their head out of the sand understands that.
 
So much suffering could be relieved, and the welfare of humanity boosted, ‘simply’ by restructuring drug regulation.
 
While I know some of my colleagues have joined in pushing for changes to drug laws and speaking up about therapeutic applications of psychedelics, many have not. For some it is understandable, as their interests lay elsewhere and uphold their Oath in other ways. For others, they seem to have dropped their commitment to the profession and are embracing a broken status quo, systematically ignoring data from clinical studies of psychedelics, and favoring industry over patients.
 
I fully realize that as a pharmacist, advocating for psychedelic therapies is a responsibility with which I am entrusted by the public.
 
Thank you for your trust. I look forward to upholding my oath for many years to come!

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