lékárniku

Lékárník is a health professional who prepares, dispenses and manages medicines, provides information on proper use and safety, and helps with pharmaceutical care. The term originates from lékárna, meaning pharmacy, and the suffix -ník denoting a person associated with something. In Czech, the word is declined across cases, with forms such as lekárník (nominative), lékárníka (genitive), lékárníkovi (dative and locative), and lékárníkem (instrumental).

Lékárník typically works in pharmacies, hospital or clinical settings, or in the pharmaceutical industry and research. Primary responsibilities include dispensing prescribed medications, checking for drug interactions and allergies, advising patients on dosage, storage, and adverse effects, compounding medications when required, and ensuring compliance with legal and safety regulations. Lékárník also collaborates with physicians, nurses, and other health professionals to optimize therapy and patient outcomes.

Education and licensing: In the Czech Republic, a pharmacist is trained at a university program in pharmacy and must obtain professional registration with the Czech Chamber of Pharmacists (Česká lékárnická komora) to practice. The training emphasizes pharmacology, therapeutics, pharmacovigilance, metrology, and ethics, often including practical internships in community or hospital pharmacies. The title may be referred to as lékárník or farmaceut in formal or international contexts.

History: The role evolved from medieval apothecaries who prepared and sold medicines to a regulated health profession with formal education and standards. The term lékárník remains in everyday Czech, while farmaceut is used in some formal contexts.

See also: Lékárna, Česká lékárnická komora.