Open AccessWhy pharmacists should not sell homeopathic products
Author(s) -
Pray W Steven
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
focus on alternative and complementary therapies
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2042-7166
pISSN - 1465-3753
DOI - 10.1111/j.2042-7166.2010.01052.x
Subject(s) - quackery , homeopathy , medicine , profit (economics) , for profit , appeal , pharmacist , alternative medicine , traditional medicine , pharmacy , law , family medicine , business , finance , economics , pathology , political science , microeconomics
Homeopathy has grown to an alarming extent in the USA in recent decades. There are many compelling reasons for pharmacists to refuse to stock and sell these products. For instance, their safety and efficacy is unproven, patients using them may forego legitimate medical therapy, their sales yield a dishonest profit, selling them may expose the seller to legal consequences, they violate the oath of the pharmacist, they foster the encroachment of quackery in medicine, and they appeal to greed and profit motives. Pharmacists should adhere to a high professional standard that demands proven safety and efficacy in the products they sell.