AT THE CHEMIST'S

Specialized shops where medicines are sold are called chemist’s shops or chemist’s (in the USA and Canada the word “pharmacy” is used). Chemist’s shops are usually situated on the ground floor. They have a hall for visitors, two departments for selling drugs, and proper working rooms.

The department for reception of prescriptions and delivery of drugs is called a prescription department. The other one is called a chemist’s department. At the prescription department medicines are sold or made up according to prescriptions. At the chemist’s department one may buy medicines without prescriptions. In this department one may buy also different things for medical care and medicinal plants.

The working rooms of a chemist's include rooms for washing, drying and sterilization of glassware, an analytical laboratory, a room for storing medicines, a room for dispensing them and some others.

At the chemist's all medicines are kept in drug cabinets, on the open shelves and in the refrigerator. Poisonous drugs are kept in the drug cabinet with the letter A. Strong effective drugs are kept in the drug cabinet having the letter B.

The drugs prepared at the chemist's for immediate use should be kept in the refrigerator. Powders, galenical preparations and medicines produced at the pharmaceutical plants are usually kept on the shelves protected from light at a constant temperature, not higher than a room temperature.

Every small bottle or box has a label with the name of the medicine. There are labels of four colours for the drugs prepared at the chemist's,white labels indicate medicines for internal use, blue labels indicate drugs used for injections. Drugs for external application have labels of a yellow colour. Drugs used for treatment of eye diseases have labels of a pink colour.

The single dose and the total dosage are indicated on the label or the signature. The directions for the administration of a drug are very important for sick people as well as for those who take care of them.

At the chemist’s department medicines are kept according to the therapeutic effect: drugs for cough, cardiac medicines, drugs for head­ache, and so on. Disinfectants, herbs and things for medical care such as hot-water bottles, medicine droppers, cups, thermometers are kept separately.

In the prescription department one can see drugs of all kinds, boxes and parcels of different powders, ampoules of glucose and camphor used for intramuscular and intravenous injections; tubes of ointments for rubbing; different pills and tablets for internal use; tonics and seda­tives administered orally.