ASHP guidelines on emergency medicine pharmacist services.

Emergency medicine (EM) is an ever-changing, rapidly evolving practice specialty. The formal emergency department (ED) has its roots in the 1950s, when full-time emergency services were established in the United States. Since then, the rate of mortality from accidental and traumatic injuries has significantly declined as a result of the development of regional trauma centers and improved training in the care of trauma patients. The first descriptions of pharmacy services provided in the ED appeared in the 1970s. These early reports detail services primarily related to medication distribution. Since that time, the literature has detailed the development of EM pharmacy services as they evolved to address changing needs in the ED. In recent years, the number of EM pharmacists (EMPs) has dramatically increased, likely as a result of several factors, including an increased focus on preventing medication errors in the ED and the EMP’s role in error prevention, changing medication management standards from regulatory and accrediting agencies, and emerging literature on a variety of critical illnesses that emphasizes the need for early, goaldirected therapy. Furthermore, initial research indicates that ED health care providers highly value the services provided by EMPs.