The druggist is in.

She's reinvented herself as an independent pharmacy consultant -a pharmacist who counsels patients for a fee. The job description is so new that Smith is one of only a few in the Washington area and perhaps 500 or so nationwide. That's the number in a database compiled by the American Society of Consultant Pharmacists (ASCP), a 35-year-old professional group for pharmacists in senior care, of members who say they are willing to do private consulting work. But only a fraction of that number derive the bulk of their income, as does Smith, from independent consulting.